What is “fetal personhood” and why is it so dangerous?
Fetal personhood is the legal idea that life begins at conception — and that embryos and fetuses should be granted the same rights as people who have been born. It may sound theoretical, but fetal personhood laws are already reshaping our healthcare, legal system, and access to reproductive care.
Why It Matters Now
In February 2024, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF should be considered legal “children.” This decision sent shockwaves across the country — not just because of its chilling impact on IVF access, but because it shows how fetal personhood is moving from fringe ideology into courtrooms and state constitutions.
Across the U.S., more than 10 states have laws or constitutional amendments that treat embryos or fetuses as people. Some laws extend personhood across all areas of civil and criminal law. Others show up in feticide laws, wrongful death lawsuits, and even divorce cases.
How Fetal Personhood Affects IVF
IVF often involves creating multiple embryos — not all of which are implanted. Some are frozen for later use, donated, or discarded. But if those embryos are considered legal people, standard IVF practices could become criminalized. Clinics may face legal risks simply for storing, transporting, or discarding embryos — making IVF more expensive, restricted, or unavailable altogether.
People navigating infertility already face emotional and financial hurdles. Fetal personhood laws add legal jeopardy to that list.
What Else Is at Risk?
Fetal personhood laws impact much more than just IVF:
Abortion: They pave the way to criminalize abortion nationwide — even in states where it's legal.
Miscarriage care: People may face investigation or prosecution after a pregnancy loss.
Contraception: Birth control methods like IUDs or emergency contraception could be restricted under personhood laws that define pregnancy as beginning at fertilization.
Basic medical care: In emergencies, hospitals may delay or deny abortion or miscarriage care for fear of violating “fetal rights.”
These laws don’t just regulate healthcare — they criminalize it.
The Bottom Line
Fetal personhood isn’t about protecting life — it’s about controlling people who can get pregnant. It inserts politics into private medical decisions and turns patients, providers, and even IVF embryos into potential legal targets.
More resources:
Jessica Valenti over at Abortion Every Day has been doing amazing work educating people about the dangers of fetal personhood for years. Check out these articles of hers for more information:
Pregnancy Justice also has a great (long) description of fetal personhood which can be read here
