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Much of the focus on the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has rightly been directed at the devastating harm to women with unwanted pregnancies. But the ruling also affects those who want to have a child. It gives states and potentially Congress the authority to interfere with and surveil the entire reproductive cycle, from efforts to conceive to delivery.
Even before people become pregnant, states could monitor period tracking or fertility apps to try to identify women who have abortions. Missouri has already done this. Although an affront to health privacy, such actions are not prohibited by HIPAA, which does not apply to these apps.
In vitro fertilization might also be affected. Fertilizing eggs in a Petri dish often results in extra embryos, which are usually frozen. And preimplantation genetic testing, or PGT, is performed on more than 40 percent of embryos before they are transferred into the uterus. Leftover embryos are frequently discarded or donated to research after patients have completed procreation or PGT detects genetic abnormalities. In some abortion-restrictive states, this may not...