Trump calls for universal coverage of IVF treatment with no specifics on how his plan would work

POTTERVILLE, Mich. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump says that, if he wins a second term, he wants to make IVF treatment free for women, but did not detail how he would fund his plan or precisely how it would work.

“I'm announcing today in a major statement that under the Trump administration, your government will pay for — or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for — all costs associated with IVF treatment,” he said at an event in Michigan. “Because we want more babies, to put it nicely."

IVF treatments are notoriously expensive, and can cost tens of thousands of dollars for a single round. Many women require multiple rounds and there is no guarantee of success.

The announcement comes as Trump has been under intense criticism from Democrats for his role in appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to an abortion in the country. The decision has led to a wave of restrictions across Republican-led states, including proposals that have threatened access to IVF by trying to define life as beginning at conception. IVF relies on the creation of multiple embryos, some of which may be destroyed.