EXCLUSIVE: Senators to Introduce Bill Promoting Holistic Fertility Methods

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Two Senate Republicans will introduce legislation to promote a holistic approach to healing infertility.

Sens. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., and James Lankford, R-Okla., will introduce the Reproductive Empowerment and Support Through Optimal Restoration (RESTORE) Act on Thursday to address underlying causes of infertility like endometriosis and polycystic ovarian syndrome.

“So many couples of today’s childbearing-aged generations face an uphill battle with fertility struggles that are complex and unique to every woman and man,” Hyde-Smith said. “The holistic fertility policy promoted through the RESTORE Act aims to treat the root causes of infertility, many of which stem from chronic conditions and environmental factors that are the focus of President Trump’s MAHA movement.”

The bill would “promote research and data collection on reproductive health conditions” and “provide training opportunities for medical professionals to learn how to diagnose and treat” those conditions, according to the legislative text obtained by The Daily Signal.

The bill was first introduced in the 118th Congress and has been updated to include more substantive solutions to both male and female infertility.

Rep. Diana Harshbarger, R-Tenn., and Riley Moore, R-W.Va., are introducing a House companion measure.

The U.S. birth rate has been on a downward slide since the Great Recession of 2007 to 2009. In 2024, the total fertility rate went up slightly, though, but still by less than 1%. The total projected number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime is now 1.63, which is slightly above the 2023 projection, but still well below the population replacement rate of 2.1.

If passed, the bill would promote educational tools for women seeking information about reproductive health conditions and restorative reproductive medicine.

It would also provide training opportunities for medical professionals to learn how to diagnose and treat reproductive health conditions.

The bill directs the secretary of Health and Human Services and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health to conduct data collection and implement ongoing reports to assess the access women and men have to restorative reproductive medicine and infertility care through proper testing, diagnosis, and treatment of reproductive conditions.

It uses existing funding opportunities in Title X and the Office of Population Affairs to provide medical training for medical students and professionals to treat couples struggling with reproductive health conditions and infertility.

Additions to the bill from its original version include provisions advancing lifestyle medicine prescriptions as a method for treating male infertility and directing HHS, the Centers for Medicaid and Medicaid, and all relevant panels to update the diagnostic and procedural codes related to infertility treatments that implement the practice of restorative reproductive medicine. 

“If we are going to truly support women and men who are ready to embrace parenthood, then we should promote substantive fertility solutions that ensure access to restorative reproductive medicine—fully healing couples and empowering them with autonomy over how they start and build their families,” Hyde-Smith said.

The bill contains strong religious and conscience protections and has been endorsed by the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists Action, Americans United for Life, the Ethics & Public Policy Center, Family Policy Alliance, Heritage Action for America, March for Life Action, Students for Life Action, and Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America.

Doctors who practice restorative reproductive medicine say it has comparable outcomes to in vitro fertilization for a fraction of the costs and without side effects.

“We really believe that restorative reproductive medicine should be first line treatment for most couples that are experiencing infertility,” restorative reproductive medicine specialist Dr. Monica Minjeur told The Daily Signal. “We are trying to address those underlying causes and conditions, and what we find is that we have similar outcomes [to IVF].”

Restorative reproductive medicine has about the premature-birth rate of IVF, Minjeur said.

“We’re correcting the underlying health conditions of not only the woman, but sometimes the male partner as well,” she said. “Helping to improve better outcomes for mom, for dad, for baby along the way, then sets them up for better health long term, and if they want to go on to conceive again in the future, we’ve already addressed those underlying conditions.”

The post EXCLUSIVE: Senators to Introduce Bill Promoting Holistic Fertility Methods appeared first on The Daily Signal.