2025 Wrapped: Advocacy and Engagement in the Office of Public Affairs
From fighting for the passage of state and federal IVF mandates to working to reinstate funding for women’s and reproductive health research, ASRM’s Office of Public Affairs in Washington, D.C. had a productive 2025! Keep reading to learn what we achieved and what’s on the horizon in 2026.
Town Halls
The Office of Public Affairs held both virtual and in-person town halls this year to keep members and partner organizations apprised of reproductive medicine news and policy updates:
- "What to Expect from 2025 Legislative Sessions" was held virtually on January 14.
- "What You Really Need to Know About Restorative Reproductive Medicine ('RRM')" was held virtually on September 25, featuring Dr. Richard Paulson.
- We held an in-person panel on RRM on October 27 at the 2025 ASRM Congress and Expo, featuring Dr. Eve Feinberg and PRIMED Program alum, Dr. Ben Peipert.
- The Office of Public Affairs held virtual and in-person town hall events titled "Where We Go from Here: Emerging Questions from the White House's IVF Policy Announcement." The live session took place in the Spotlight Theater at the 2025 ASRM Congress.
Thank you to the advocates who tuned in, asked questions, and provided their vital input!
White House IVF Policy Recommendations
When the White House released an executive order requesting policy input on IVF access, ASRM released a list of IVF accessibility priorities for the Administration’s consideration.
After the Trump Administration announced their executive initiative on IVF, Public Affairs held both a virtual town hall and an in-person briefing in conjunction with Ferring Pharmaceuticals to ensure stakeholders understood what exactly the policy did, and did not, achieve for IVF accessibility.
Annual SART statistics and National Infertility Awareness Week
During National Infertility Awareness Week (NIAW), Public Affairs issued a press release summarizing the latest Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) statistics, including that over 95,000 babies were born via IVF in 2023, a more than four percent increase from the previous year. More than 2.6 percent of all babies born in 2023 were through IVF—we think that’s pretty remarkable!
Federal Advocacy Day
Our Virtual Federal Advocacy Day in partnership with RESOLVE featured advocates from all 50 states and saw a record number of ASRM members in attendance! Attendees held meetings with their representatives to discuss current bills, share their stories, and flex their federal advocacy muscles. “Year after year, the advocacy efforts of ASRM members have resulted in positive change at the federal and state level,” said Dr. Elizabeth Ginsburg, Immediate Past President of ASRM. “We are at our strongest when patients and providers come together to advocate for life-changing policies, such as IVF mandates and increased insurance coverage.”
Calls to Reinstate Federal Funding
Following mass funding and staff cuts at the FDA, NIH, and CDC, we worked hard to protect and reinstate funding for women’s health and infertility research. ASRM Immediate Past President Dr. Elizabeth Ginsburg issued a statement decrying the cuts, saying “The terminations occurring today at FDA, NIH, and CDC are both dangerous and devastating. These agencies—and the talented, dedicated physicians and scientists who serve within them—play a critical role in safeguarding public health.”
We gathered stories from members whose jobs or research were impacted and launched the “Fighting for our Future” campaign to counter funding cuts destabilizing medical research, particularly in reproductive medicine. All members of the ASRM Board of Directors made personal financial contributions to the fund, and ASRM pledged to match the first $1 million in donations.
Briefing on the Hill
Public Affairs hosted a Capitol Hill briefing for policymakers and staff to hear from providers and patients about protecting IVF access and the importance of evidence-based treatment in the face of ongoing attacks. The event featured introductions from ASRM Chief Advocacy & Policy Officer Sean Tipton, welcoming remarks from Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Shultz (D-FL), a provider panel including Dr. Micah Hill and members of the ASRM PRIMED 2025 cohort, patient advocates, a policy panel with RESOLVE Director Of Government Affairs Alise Powell, and closing remarks from CPL Director Becca O’Connor.
2025 Annual Meeting and Expo
The 2025 ASRM Congress was held in San Antonio, TX! The Public Affairs booth featured informational handouts on restorative reproductive medicine (RRM), protecting IVF access, and details of the White House IVF announcement, along with a gratitude wall, a slideshow of the year’s advocacy events, and—as always—candy and sperm-and-egg pens! In addition to the RRM panel and the White House IVF policy convening in the Spotlight Theater, the 2025 PRIMED cohort gave their Capstone presentations—scroll down to the CPL & PRIMED section for more!
ASRM at AMA
Policy drafted by ASRM Government Affairs Manager Emma Berens and ASRM delegates Drs. Ginny Ryan and Rachel Whynott opposing efforts to limit IVF access at the federal and state levels was adopted by the American Medical Association (AMA)!
The NDAA and IVF for Military Families Act
As the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) wrapped up in Congress, it was announced that Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) intended to strip IVF funding from the final bill. Determined to protect the military families who depend on IVF access, we fought back with letters and statements denouncing the threat, Action Alerts encouraging members to contact their legislators, and #KeepIVFinNDAA, a social media campaign featuring military families’ IVF stories. ASRM was disappointed that IVF was ultimately stripped from the bill, but we are encouraged by the introduction of the IVF for Military Families Act and stand ready to fight for its passage in 2026.
SB 729 in Effect
SB 729 became law in California on January 1, 2026! Under this mandate, large market insurance plans are required to provide coverage for infertility diagnosis and treatment, as well as up to three egg retrievals and unlimited embryo transfers for patients. We are grateful to our Government Affairs team for their tireless work in 2025 to pass this momentous bill!
Top Fertility Resource
We were honored to be named a 2025 Everyday Health Trusted Health Resource and Top 10 Fertility Resource! This recognition reflects ASRM's commitment to advancing reproductive medicine through education, connection, and advocacy for providers and individuals and families navigating fertility journeys. We thank our peer organizations and the fertility community for making this work possible—we couldn’t do it without you.
Highlights from the Center of Policy and Leadership (CPL) and PRIMED
- The 2025 PRIMED Scholars Cohort presented their capstone presentations at ASRM 2025 in San Antonio, TX! Read more about the Cohort and view their projects here.
- The 2025 PRIMED Scholars Cohort visited Capitol Hill on their Washington D.C. immersion trip in September 2025. The cohort met with Congressional Offices and took part in a briefing led by the ASRM Office of Public Affairs. Read more about the PRIMED Scholars’ D.C. visit here.
- The CPL issued a fact sheet entitled “Key Details & Emerging Questions from the White House's IVF Announcement,” highlighting the takeaways and implementation questions from the Trump Administration’s IVF initiative announced in October 2025 and published a whitepaper in November 2025 titled “Evaluating the Trump Administration’s Initiative on IVF: Questions and Key Recommendations for Implementation,” discussing how the Trump Administration’s initiative meets the current landscape of access to reproductive and fertility care and providing policy and evaluation guidance on forthcoming implementation measures.
- In March 2025, the CPL published a whitepaper conducting a comparative analysis on the oversight of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) in the United States and additional countries. The paper clarifies the existing oversight measures in the U.S. and discusses what we can learn from international regulatory systems. Read the full paper here.
- The CPL published four “Just the Facts” resources highlighting the safety of IVF, misinformation related to so-called “Restorative Reproductive Medicine (RRM),” IVF policy priorities, and evidence-based information on biological or “assigned” sex, as well as a “Follow the Science” fact sheet on evidence-based scientific responses to infertility.
- In February 2025, the CPL held a convening of medical and industry leaders in reproductive medicine to discuss the landscape of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) under the new Trump Administration and coordinate efforts to maintain and improve access to comprehensive evidence-based reproductive healthcare.
- In October 2025 CPL Director, Rebecca O’Connor delivered the keynote address, “Advancing Reproductive Medicine in Challenging Times,” at the Northwestern University Center for Reproductive Science’s Upper Midwest Summit for Reproductive Science. “The Northwestern University Center for Reproductive Science (CRS) provided a crucial opportunity for reproductive health leaders to come together, foster dialogue, and spark actionable change in our field. I was honored to represent the ASRM Center for Policy and Leadership at this important convening,” said O’Connor, who also joined colleagues on a policy panel at the summit. Read more about the Upper Midwest Summit for Reproductive Science here.
