In infertility, becoming pregnant is not the only hurdle that must be over come. Fertility treatments can be very costly, running anywhere from $4,000 to $20,000 per treatment, putting it out of reach for many people. Finding fertility treatment financing options is another area of concern for most people seeing fertility treatments.

Most people are not aware of any fertility problems until they are seeking to start a family. Because of this, the significant amount of money it takes to pay for treatment has not been set aside. However, there are fertility treatment financing options that can help you come up with the funds necessary to pay for treatments.

Insurance
If you have not checked your insurance policy, that is a good place to start. Not every insurance policy covers all or part of fertility treatments but it is worth looking closely at your policy to see if can offer any relief. Talk with the finance person at the fertility treatment center or get the diagnosis and treatment codes and call the insurance provider directly. Before beginning treatment, it can help to talk to your employer to see if the company pays for ay part of fertility treatments.

Savings
Not everyone has savings, but if you do, it may be your best fertility treatment financing option. Be sure to exhaust other resources, such as insurance, first.

Borrow from Your 401k
While tapping in to your 401k is not your best option, it can be the lesser evil among some very difficult decisions. Some 401k plans will allow you to dip in early for a number of reasons, and fertility treatments may be one of those allowances of your plan.

Use Your Employee Flexible Spending Account
If you have a flexible spending account, fertility treatments may be one of the allowable expenses. Find out what procedures your insurance will and will not cover and which to procedures your flexible spending account may be applied.

Get a Loan
There are a number of resources you can tap into for loans such as home equity loans. There are also several companies that specialize in IVF loans.

Shared Risk Programs
Some clinics offer shared risk programs. Clients pay for a certain number of treatments up front and get a portion of the money back if the treatment is not successful. Most clinics define successful as conception, not the result of a live birth, however.

Get a Second Job
A second job is another valuable and realistic fertility treatment financing option. While adding hours to your work schedule may increase your stress for a time, it will save on future stress trying to pay off credit cards and the interest incurred.

Downsize
Cutting back to the necessities can free up a considerable amount of money that can be directed toward fertility treatments.

Not every fertility treatment financing option is right for ever situation. In many cases, a combination of several options proves most successful.

Getting pregnant does not always come easily. In fact, fertility problems are on the rise due to many factors, such as delaying pregnancy, causing many people to have to seek out medical intervention. While difficulty in conception is one problem, the cost of fertility treatment is another.

The Financial Pressures of Fertility Treatment
Most people do not expect to encounter fertility problems and, therefore, do not plan their finances to cover the cost of fertility treatments. While fertility treatment costs vary between clinics and location, the cost is a significant one, leaving many to wonder how it might be managed.

Developing a Plan
In most cases, paying out of pocket is cost prohibitive and it will take a combination of a number of resources to manage the cost of fertility treatments. Additionally, those resources will need to be carefully and strategically managed. It is important to fully investigate all of the resources that are available and make plans based on those resources. For example, if your funds are very limited, you might choose the most aggressive treatment plan first, rather than hope that a less expensive or less effective one might work and eliminate other  options. Or, perhaps your insurance will cover conservative methods that you will want to exhaust before moving on to another treatment plan.

Covering the Cost of Fertility Treatments
There are a number of ways that the costs of fertility treatments might be managed. Not everyone will have the same resources available so it may take some investigation to find out exactly what options are available to you. Some of the most common methods of funding fertility treatments include:

1.    Borrowing from family. Family members can be a great resource in helping you achieve a family.
2.    Insurance. Your insurance policy may cover some of the more conservative treatments and is a great place to start.
3.    Fertility treatment loans. Some companies specialize in loans specifically for fertility treatments.
4.    Savings. Not everyone has a large savings account, but if you do, it may be worth it to fund your dream.
5.    Borrow from your 401K. Not every 401k plan allows you to borrow money for fertility treatments, but it may be worth checking. While not a first option, it ca be a lesser of the evils.
6.    Get a second job. Adding a second job may add short term stress, but it is worth saving yourself the added pressures of trying to pay off high interest credit cards or dipping in to other funds.
7.    Down Size your life. There is room to save money in most lifestyles. Cutting back the fat and living as frugally as possible worth the log term gratification.

Tackling the mounting costs of fertility treatment may not be easy, but it well worth every effort.

Fertility treatments offer hope to many couples who may otherwise be unlikely to conceive. These treatments however, come at a fairly steep price. While the prices may vary by clinic, state, or country, the amount is still significant. Most insurance companies only cover a small portion of fertility treatments, if any at all, leaving the remaining sum to come out of pocket. Here is a general breakdown of fertility treatment costs:

Fertility Drugs
Often the first line of treatment is the use of fertility drugs such as clomiphene and gonadotropins. These drugs are used to regulate reproductive hormones and ovulation. If an insurance covers part of fertility treatment, it generally will be the cost of fertility drugs. Clomiphene costs $50 per month, while gonadotropin injections cost $2,000 to $5,000 per month.

Artificial Insemination
Artificial insemination is often used in conjunction with fertility drugs. This procedure may cost between $400 to $700.

In Vitro Fertilization ( IVF)
IVF treatments are much more involved than fertility drugs or artificial insemination, and the price will reflect that. You can expect the cost o this treatment to be between $7,000 and $17,000 per cycle, with many couples needing more than one cycle.

Gamete Intrafallopian Transfer (GIFT)
The Gamete Intrafallopian Transfer is also a more complex procedure, and generally not covered by insurance. The cost for this treatment costs between $8,000 to $17,000.

Zygote Intrafallopian Transfer (ZIFT)
Another high tech fertility treatment,  the cost of Zygote Intrafallopian Transfer is also considerable. If you are considering this treatment, plan on paying between $8,000 and $17,000

Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI)
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection is often used in conjunction with other fertility treatments and may not be included in the cost of the procedure. The cost of the fertility treatment is between $10,000 and $17,00.

Donor Eggs and Embryos
The cost of fertility treatment using donor eggs or embryos is between $10,000 and $20,000.

Shared Risk Programs
Some clinics offer a shared risk option. In shared risk, a patient pays up front for multiple cycles of treatment an the clinic agrees to pay back all or a portion of the fee if the treatment is not successful. In most cases, successful means reaching a clinical pregnancy, not a treatment resulting in live birth. Not every clinic offers this option and only the patients in the lowest risk (for the clinic) category qualify.

When trying to calculate the cost of fertility treatments, it is important to realize that different clinics will include and exclude different things as part of their treatment. Find out prior to treatment what things are an additional cost.

Is IVF Covered by Insurance Companies?

When a couple experiences infertility they are faced with many hard decisions. Reproductive medicine can be very costly and the insured is very fortunate if their policy covers the needed treatments. Only 13 states mandate the coverage of some fertility treatments:

• Arkansas requires health insurance companies to cover the cost of IVF up to a lifetime maximum of $15,000. HMOs exempt.
• California requires certain insurers to offer coverage of infertility diagnosis and treatment. Group insurers must inform employers of this availability; however law does not require the employer to offer the plans.
• Connecticut requires individual and group health plans to cover medically necessary infertility procedures, including IVF, IUI, Embryo transfer, GIFT, and ZIFT to a specific maximum.
• Hawaii requires certain insurance providers offer holders a one time benefit for IVF costs already incurred.
• Illinois law requires policies covering 25 or more people and offering pregnancy benefits must cover the cost of the diagnosis and treatment of infertility including IVF, Embryo transfer, GIFT, ZIFT, ICSI.
• Maryland law requires that providers covering pregnancy also cover out patient costs associated with IVF treatment.
• Massachusetts law requires providers covering pregnancy also cover the medically necessary cost of fertility treatments, including IVF, IUI, GIFT, ZIFT and sperm and egg retrieval.
• Montana law requires HMOs to cover all preventable healthcare treatments including fertility. It does not however, define infertility nor specify what treatments should be covered.
• New Jersey law requires group policies covering 50 or more people covering pregnancy also cover the cost of infertility treatments including surgery, including IVF, IUI, GIFT, ZIFT and sperm and egg retrieval.
• New York law stipulates that private and group plans issued within the state cover the treatment of correctable conditions, including infertility. It excluded IVF, ZIFT, and GIFT.
• Ohio law mandates insurers to cover all basic health care expenses including medically necessary infertility treatments, though it does not define medically necessary.
• Rhode Island insurers coving pregnancy must also cover the medically necessary treatments for infertility.
• Texas insurers covering pregnancy must offer coverage for IVF. Employers must be informed of these benefits but it is not mandated that they offer them.
• West Virginia HMOs must cover all basic health care services including infertility treatments but does not define infertility or what treatments must be covered.

At this time, most policies do not cover the full cost of reproductive medicine as it is viewed as elective. However as health care continues to evolve this may change as many fertility treatment centers and patients advocate for inclusion. Currently, most insurance policies which include infertility treatments only cover the cost of treatments and visits to the fertility treatment center until the point of needing in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments. Most fertility treatment centers have someone that works to assure that the insured is utilizing available coverage however, those considering infertility treatments should be proactive and research the laws in their state, and know their insurance policy.