A US obstetrician-gynecologist declined to provide a direct yes-or-no response when Republican Senator Josh Hawley repeatedly asked whether men can become pregnant during a Senate hearing on abortion drugs.

The exchange took place before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee during a hearing examining chemical abortion medication. Hawley directed the question to Dr. Nisha Verma, an OB-GYN appearing as a witness.

Verma did not answer the question directly. She said she provides care to patients with different identities and questioned why Hawley wanted a simple binary response.

Hawley continued pressing for a straightforward answer, saying he was asking about biological facts and not personal identity. He argued that the distinction matters in discussions involving medicine, law and public policy.

Verma maintained that questions framed in strictly binary terms can be used for political purposes and emphasized the range of patients she treats.

The back-and-forth lasted several minutes before excerpts of the hearing circulated widely online. The exchange has since sparked renewed debate in the US over biological sex, gender identity, medical terminology and how such issues should be addressed in public policy.