IVF Benefits on the Rise Thanks to Tech Giants

It is the dream of almost every woman to hold her baby one day when the right time comes. However, the dream sometimes is shattered when she cannot get pregnant due to some fertility problems, and she has to seek outside help in the hopes of still being able to hold her bundle of joy.

Why women need IVF Women are no longer the typical housewives they were in the past. They have decided to advance their education and careers, and put family life on hold. By the time they have climbed the ladder of success, they are past 35, and that is when they want to start a family. In fact, birth rates in America for women over 35 have in the past twenty years modestly risen. Unfortunately, for such women, their biological clocks have been ticking all this time, leaving their fertility levels very low. Worse, the eggs that are left are old and likely to cause unhealthy babies. Further, some eggs have damaged mitochondria which are useful in providing energy for a growing embryo. therefore, once mitochondria-damaged eggs are fertilized, chances of carrying a baby to full term are slim.

Need for Egg Donors

The good news is that IVF (In-Vitro Fertilization) enables older women to conceive quickly. However, it does not solve the aging eggs problem hence the resolution for some women to freeze their eggs for future use. Egg freezing is expensive and does not guarantee positive results, but in such cases, egg donors help couples to fulfill their desires.

IVF Drawbacks

Even with its advantages, IVF comes with its share of drawbacks such as being very expensive with each cycle costing over $12,000, and since it is not covered by insurance always, most women enter into debt to afford payments. Therefore, even as technology makes significant strides, it is most likely that only the wealthy will afford. IVF also requires hormonal injections to stimulate the ovaries to produce eggs for harvesting. The injections have several side effects such as nausea, bloating, weight gain, vomiting, diarrhea, and soreness. Besides, fertility clinics lack regulatory oversight and give treatments to patients before trial clinics prove successful.

Companies Now Providing IVF Treatment for Employees

To help couples with the cost of undergoing infertility treatment, some companies provide infertility health insurance for their employees. Such companies include American Express which covers 90% of the total cost and $15,000 maximum for lifetime infertility treatments benefits, including IVF. Another company is Anthem/WellPoint in Denver, Colorado. It covers patients with PPO and MMO plans with up to a maximum of $ 5,000-lifetime benefits for all kinds of infertility treatments. Meds, on the other hand, are under a separate policy covering them up to $5,000 annual maximum, which is at 50% of the after in-network discounted rates.

All in all, IVF technology has enabled women to pursue their goals without worrying about the inability of having babies. With further advancement, age will no longer be an issue in deciding when to start a family. besides, with having their employers shoulder the burden of undergoing the infertility treatments, they can put their worries and go ahead to fulfill their career goals.