Bill to protect IVF passes unanimously in Georgia House, now heads to Senate
In vitro fertilization is one step closer to being protected under Georgia law. A bill to do that passed the Georgia House unanimously on Thursday.
Both sides, Republican and Democrat, wanted to pass the bill to protect in vitro fertilization in Georgia law, no one more so than Statesboro Republican Lehman Franklin.
After eight years of trying, his wife just became pregnant thanks to IVF. House Speaker Jon Burns asked him to carry the bill.
'It's been a beautiful thing to be a process, be in the process of, and I'm just thankful to do it,' Franklin said.
Democrats and Republicans all chimed in with their support.
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'Every family deserves the opportunity to bring life into this world when they are ready,' state Rep. Esther Panitch said.
'I think it is critical that legally we protect this right in Georgia as a part of law,' state Rep. Deborah Silcox said.
The law codifies IVF protection in Georgia law to avoid what happened in Alabama, where its Supreme Court declared it illegal under that state's abortion law.
It was almost unanimous, save for one holdout Woodstock Republican Charlice Byrd, but Democrats and Republicans finally convinced her to vote with the majority and it passed without a single no vote.
'Under the protection of HB 428, every Georgian who faces a challenge, the challenge of infertility, will have access to IVF which has made it possible for thousands of families to realize the dream of parenthood,' Burns said.
Passing the bill was one of Burns' legislative priorities. It now heads to the senate.
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