IVF Candidate Slammed Over Embryo Ruling

0:00This is Cory with the story with Birmingham News today, powered by the Daily News Now. A political group called Alabama Families for IVF launched a TV at Slamming Attorney General candidate, Jay Mitchell, over a Supreme Court opinion he wrote two years ago. The ad blames Mitchell for causing IVF clinics across Alabama to temporarily stop services. Mitchell, who stepped down from the court last May to run, insists the ads was his ruling and says he strongly supports IVF access. The decision came in February 2024, from a case where couples sued after their frozen embryos were accidentally destroyed at a clinic. Mitchell's opinion, backed by most justices, said those embryos counted as unborn children under the state's wrongful death law for minors. That sparked legal worries for clinics handling IVF. The ruling drew quick backlash from families and providers, halting treatments stay wide, and grabbing national headlines. Former President Trump voiced strong backing for IVF.

1:00As did Alabama's U.S. Senators, urging quick fixes to keep services running. Lawmakers responded fast, with the new law shielding IVF providers from lawsuits tied to the decision, though it left the embryo status unchanged. Now Mitchell faces a crowd of Republican primary on May 19 against Blount County District Attorney Pamela Casey, who has IVF kids, and another. With the ad-hitting airways from a group of IVF parents, the race heats up over family issues just weeks from primary day.