In some cases, advocates tell families to seek treatments abroad where procedures are more affordable.
– Egg freezing and in vitro fertilization are two high-tech medical procedures that can literally create life.
Penelope Turgeon and her husband met later in life but wanted a family so badly. They actually had insurance, but to their complete surprise, because their case involved reversing a vasectomy, none of it was covered.They actually had insurance, but to their complete surprise, because their case involved reversing a vasectomy, none of it was covered.
Dr. Jennifer Hirshfeld-Cytron, the medical director at Fertility Centers of Illinois, explained that the cost itself isn't as astronomical as one might think. Hirshfeld-Cytron took CBS 2 on a tour of her River North office to show how they make miracles happen. She explained it's the insurance plan and even the state patients live in that dictate whether a couple's access to the kinds of miracles is financially possible, or completely unaffordable.
As of this summer, 21 states, including Illinois, have passed fertility insurance coverage laws and 14 of those laws include some form of IVF coverage. But there are many exceptions.For example, a patient's company must be headquartered in Illinois and have 150 employees, Hirschfeld-Cytron said. No states currently require coverage for"elective egg freezing," the process in which a woman's eggs are extracted and frozen. Those eggs can later be used for IVF.
"Luckily, we're gradually, year by year, getting more coverage and more access for women, couples and aspiring families across the U.S.," she said.
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