Fertility Coverage or Bust for our Patients

The average cost of a cycle of IVF, including medications hovers around $15-16,000 (all costs). Cost is obviously a barrier to IVF which is unfortunate as it provides the highest chance of live birth. Approximately 50% of the patients I see have infertility treatment coverage. This is due to our close proximity to Illinois which has one of the more comprehensive fertility mandates in the US.

Many times insurance companies that cover IVF will not cover it unless there is a "medical necessity." Oftentimes we write letters and talk on the phone with insurance company MDs fighting for our patients to have coverage for IVF. This usually involves multiple levels of written letters, peer to peer phone conversations and in-person testimonies.

Sometimes we are successful and sometimes we come up short. Man, it feels good when we get a claim approved! I wanted to share a recent success story emphasizing that persistence pays off.

IVF is Firstline treatment for Women 38-42 struggling to conceive

If you have unexplained infertility (normal tubes, sperm and ovulatory cycles), and are between 38-42, IVF may be the first-line option for treatment. The Press release below is from an email that will become publically available on the ASRM website under Bulletins. I wanted to share it with the readership.

Credit: American Society of Reproductive Medicine

What is Mini IVF?

“Natural”, “gentle” fertility treatments seem appealing when it comes to in vitro fertilization. However, the evidence is not swayed by marketing. After performing a review of the literature, there are several points to be aware of when considering mini IVF.

National Infertility Awareness Week 4/20-4/26

In the spirit of National Infertility Awareness Week, I will be posting several articles on topics that seem to capture the interest of a lot of the readership. The topics will deal with fibroids, fertility preservation, egg freezing, mini IVF and IVF insurance coverage. There will be embedded links galore for further reading should you be interested. Stay Tuned

Changes to Fertility treatment in order to reduce multiples

A paper released in a joint collaboration between researchers at Yale and March of Dimes issued recommendations commenting on issues related to preterm births, multiple births and Fertility treatment titled: Recommendations for changes in policy and clinical practice. It is in press in Fertility and Sterility, a leading journal in reproductive medicine. Read on for the bulletin and view other bulletins from the American Society of Reproductive Medicine.

Got fibroids?

I have fibroids. Fibroids come many shapes and sizes and range in symptomatology from no symptoms to unbearable, pain and heavy bleeding. Not all fibroids are associated with infertility, but those that distort the cavity or cause symptoms in women who desire fertility should be evaluated by a gynecologist or reproductive endocrinologist/infertility specialist. The picture below shows all of the difference locations on the uterus that fibroids can appear.