Donald Trump says his government would fund IVF, opposes 6-week abortion ban

In a move likely aimed at appealing to women voters, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he supports having the government or insurance companies cover the costs of in vitro fertilisation (IVF).

“Under the Trump administration, we are going to be paying for that treatment,” Trump said in an interview with NBC News. “Or we’re going to be mandating that the insurance company pay.”

Health insurance companies in the US are not currently obligated to cover IVF treatments, which can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Trump reiterated that one option would be to have insurance companies pay “under a mandate”.

The former president unveiled the policy later at a rally in Michigan, telling the crowd, “Your government will pay for or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for all costs associated with IVF treatment.”

Trump also stated his administration would push for new parents to deduct “major newborn expenses” from their taxes. “We want more babies,” he added.

TRUMP ‘BACKS’ ABORTION RIGHTS

In the NBC News interview, the Republican opposed Florida’s six-week abortion ban and indicated support for overturning it. “I’m going to be voting that we need more than six weeks,” he said.

At the same time, he backed exceptions in abortion laws for cases where the pregnancy poses a threat to the mother’s life, or is the result of rape or incest.

However, Trump’s campaign quickly moved to clarify his stance on the divisive issue of abortion.

“President Trump has not yet said how he will vote on the ballot initiative in Florida,” said Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s press secretary, in a statement to NPR. “He simply reiterated that he believes six weeks is too short.”

US ELECTION AND REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

The issue of reproductive rights has turned into a major point of contention in the 2024 election. Vice President Kamala Harris has repeatedly attacked Trump’s abortion position, accusing him and the Republican Party of threatening women’s rights, including access to birth control and fertility treatments.

At the Democratic National Convention, Harris claimed that Trump and his party would “limit access to birth control, ban medication abortion, enact a nationwide ban on the procedure, and force states to report on women’s miscarriages and abortions.”

The issue of access to fertility treatments became a political flashpoint earlier this year when the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos were considered children under the law, leading to a temporary pause in IVF treatments in the state.

Trump’s pledge to support IVF coverage may be seen as an attempt to moderate his stance and appeal to voters concerned about his record on abortion rights. He had urged Alabama lawmakers to preserve IVF access, and a law protecting the procedure was passed in March.

Following Trump’s announcement, a spokesperson for Harris said the former president is not to be trusted on reproductive rights. “Because Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, IVF is already under attack, and women’s freedoms have been ripped away in states across the country,” the spokesperson said.

(With Reuters inputs)

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