Fertility treatment is crazy expensive and there are no guarantees, but a recent NIH-sponsored study “concluded that women who were fast-tracked to IVF [in vitro fertilization] got pregnant three months faster on average, and spent $10,000 less than those who went through the usual preliminaries.” The conclusion: it may not be wise for insurers to require women to run the gauntlet of other treatments before trying IVF.
IVF is usually the third stage of the process, after the woman first tries clomiphene pills to help trigger ovulation, which costs about $500, then tries hormone shots, which costs about $3,000. Over the course of the treatment, skipping hormone shots and going straight to IVF averaged out to about $61,000, versus $71,000 to do it the traditional 3-stage way.
Getting pregnant three months sooner is actually a big deal, says the article, for patients who are nearing the end of their “fertile years.” It also reduced the amount of time the patients went through psychological trauma—”Fast-tracking can mean fewer episodes of dashed hopes. That could lead to less depression, anxiety, and stress, which hurts marriages and, some claim, may lower one’s chances of conceiving.”
“Skipping Baby Steps” [Slate]
(Photo: Getty)
Being told that you are infertile is like a car accident. You get hit by the infertility truck and then there’s a whole mess to clean up, legal, financial, emotional and psychical. All of a sudden you have a whole boatload of issues to research, explore and pay for.
So after the doctor diagnosis you as infertile, you are left to make alternate plans, and that gets stressful real quick. There are many unknowns to all the options, many success stories in adoptions and IVF and many horror stories. Then there are all the stories about divorce and suicide. People kill themselves when they find out they are infertile, marriages don’t last because of the stress of it.
And all the while your doctor is pushing for fertility treatments to solve your problems. Take some pills, wash some sperm, get donor sperm/eggs, etc. The doctors are very optimistic, very encouraging, very supportive.
WHY?
Because they make money off of it and fulfill their own sense of accomplishment when an infertile couple gets preggers.
They don’t mention adoption.
So in the end it’s a “medical condition” and the person that is helping you through it all is your doctor. He/she has medical solutions for personal profit and gain. Sore throat? Take some penicillin. Infertile? Let’s give you the 61k workup.
Adoption is a beautiful choice for many people, although it takes some time to get there. There are waits, scam artists, racial issues, interviews, inspections, fees and more fees. All the while you got science telling you, it can be done within your body and to give it a try (financing available to those who qualify).
I caution those who are quick to judge and give out a 30 word solution to those who are infertile. Many couples will end up adopting, it’ll just take them much more than 30 words to get there.
@BigNutty: Me too. The family you’re raised with is your family, for better or worse. Agre that people who hav to have their own blood child are in it for themselves, and are deeply ignorant about what an adoptive family is really like. Not to be gooey, but if a baby is in your care, you love it, it just happens. If gorillas can adopt kittens, humans can adopt other humans.
@CaffeinatedSquint: I don’t think they really do closed adoptions anymore. Adoptive and bio family are supposed to have contact with each other, even as the child grows. I was adopted 26 years ago and all the records are closed, but I’m told this isn’t how it’s done anymore.
@Myron: Sorry did not mean to confuse you. Read the post just above the one you are questioning.
My husband and I have been going through infertility issues. The choice to adopt or have a child is unique to each family and each situation. For now, when we want an infant, we want to have our own child. Hopefully at some later time we will have the means to adopt an older child – if we do choose to adopt later, we would want an older child rather than an infant.
My real point in commenting here is to argue the $500 price tag on clomiphine treatments. My old insurance did not cover the drug, which a good doctor will prescribe for no more than 6 months – the full price of the drug was $30/cycle. That’s about $180, not $500.
@trollkiller: Explain to me why the health care insurance I pay into should take MY money to spend on your inability to get knocked up? A portion of that $71,000 comes out of MY pocket.
No, it doesn’t.
If that’s how your health insurance plan works, I’d suggest you switch ASAP.
@ceejeemcbeegee: Really, so my premiums just go to pay for me?
Reread what I wrote please.
@ATOMIKE-
While I do not support in vitro for my own personal reasons (others can do it if they want), I certainly wouldn’t consider the fertilized eggs “people”. Neither does the US government or any legitimate science group. An acorn isn’t a tree. That fertilized egg is not a person and it’s inaccurate to call it such.
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@ no one in specific
Someone mentioned insurance companies paying for this. I wouldn’t have a problem with that if I didn’t read about insurance paying for Viagra but not birth control, emergency birth control, etc. Comprehensive women’s care isn’t available under many insurance plans and that’s seriously messed up.