Health Insurance Coverage for IVF Treatment

The health insurance coverage for IVF Treatment or Test Tube Baby Treatment is generally not available in India. In Vitro Fertilization coverage is normally not included in healthcare policies offered in India. While it is a common practice in USA where many healthcare insurance packages cover the IVF treatment fully or partially (limited to few cycles) and some of them cover the procedure costs and not the medicines. With no hospitalization required – the IVF treatments are treated at par with the day care procedures.

With the change in lifestyle the IVF treatment is becoming common – especially due to working women having late pregnancies and changing lifestyles. The corporate and medical professionals engaged in IVF treatment have been asking the insurance companies to start coverage of the IVF treatment – if not fully then in a limited way. Since the test Tube baby treatment market is matured in India and the cost of IVF treatment being more or less standardized – the insurance companies can include the coverage.

The cost of IVF treatment – starting from INR 60000/- plus medicines is definitely out of reach of most of the Indian couples. The high cost also prompts them to delay the treatment – which will further reduce the chances. If the IVF treatment is covered with the health insurance packages the couples will be encouraged to go for the treatment earlier.

It was recently announced that in Moscow the women will be covered under the compulsory health insurance (offers by city) for the IVF treatment. Even in NHS (UK) two to three cycles are offered depending on the location. The cost of IVF treatment is about 100,000 Rubles (180,000 INR) in Russia which is much higher than average cost in India.

We even encourage the affluent couples who have been blessed with a baby to gift cycles to those who can not afford. With the coverage of IVF under medical insurance I am sure there will be hope for more childless couples.