Alabama is now protecting access to IVF. But the future of IVF — and its cost —  is still up in the air

In vitro fertilization patients in Alabama can breathe easier now that state lawmakers have passed legislation to protect access to the fertility treatment, but the future of IVF in Alabama and elsewhere is still up in the air — raising concerns that patients could face higher costs for an already expensive procedure.

In response to the Alabama Supreme Court’s Feb. 16 ruling that frozen embryos were legally equivalent to children, state lawmakers passed a bill shielding IVF providers from liability. Gov. Kay Ivey, a Republican,…