Happy Infertility Advocacy Day

I'm especially interested in mandated coverage for fertility treatment. For many couples suffering from infertility, IVF is a viable option. For most patients, IVF is not covered and thus costs upwards of $12,000 out-of-pocket. Due to the high cost and lack of coverage, many patients will elect to transfer more than one embryo, thereby increasing their chances of a successful pregnancy. I did it...twice. As you may know, multiple gestation pregnancies carry a risk of premature birth (and incidentally, a higher cost to insurance companies for the common NICU stays that follow). Premature birth carries an increased risk of permanent physical and mental disabilities (which also incur a high cost for insurance companies). I read online memorials of deceased infants and children, and I can't tell you how many sets of twin and triplet memorials that I come across. I can't say for sure that these multiple births/deaths are a consequence of insufficient fertility coverage, but I can say from personal experience that high-risk multiple gestation pregnancies sometimes result in death.

If IVF was a routinely covered procedure, couples could afford to transfer just one embryo at a time.