Many couples try for years to have children naturally, but for many, health-related circumstances or other challenges make this impossible. One option that provides another chance for these individuals is in vitro fertilization, or IVF.

Since the overturning of Roe v Wade in 2022, however, IVF has been under threat in many states. Twice, bills that would have federally protected IVF were blocked by congressional Republicans. This has allowed states like Alabama and Florida to restrict IVF under their abortion laws.

President-elect Donald Trump has criticized bills banning IVF, and Iowa Republicans have also blocked legislation that would have threatened IVF. But without federal protection, the future of IVF remains in the hands of individual states and lawmakers.

This is why we need federal action, whether through executive orders by Trump or a push from Republicans in Congress to pass protections.

IVF, first used in 1978, has provided thousands of couples and individuals with another chance at parenthood.

IVF allows women to freeze multiple eggs in storage, which are later fertilized in a lab until women feel ready to become pregnant. The embryos are then implanted in the uterus to develop. The only difference between IVF and natural pregnancy is the location of fertilization — outside of the body instead of within.

Currently, around 2 percent of all babies born in the United States are conceived through IVF, equating to roughly 73,000 babies annually. That’s approximately the population of Iowa City. Yet in many states, and potentially in Iowa, IVF is at risk.

With abortion laws now left to individual states, rulings and legislation have increasingly challenged IVF.

In Alabama, the state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are legally considered children. Many women who undergo IVF store multiple embryos, often without using all of them. Under Alabama’s ruling, destroying unused embryos could be deemed wrongful death.

Rulings like this demonstrate the urgency of federally protecting IVF. Since 2022, judges and lawmakers have launched crusades to protect embryos and fetuses, but in doing this, they’ve undermined the ability of many people to have children — contradicting their stated pro-life goals by preventing potential lives from being born.

Although Trump has advocated for states’ control over abortion laws, IVF is not an abortion issue and should be treated as distinct. Trump has previously called himself the “father of IVF,” and he now has the opportunity to prove his commitment by urging congressional Republicans to pass federal protections for IVF.

Three years ago, IVF didn’t seem under threat. Since the fall of Roe v. Wade, that is no longer the case. While Republicans have voiced support for IVF in the past, it’s time to turn those words into action and federally protect it once and for all.