Comprehensive State-­Mandated Insurance Coverage of Infertility Treatments in Minimum Benefits Packages of Employee Health Insurance

Minimum benefits packages for employee health insurance plans usually only include the basic coverage necessary to survive in an attempt to control costs, similar to the new categorization of essential health benefits (EHBs) outlined in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). However, in some cases, the advantages that accompany the inclusion of higher-­‐level, more expensive services in a minimum benefits package actually lead to decreased costs over time. Coverage of infertility treatments, such as in vitro fertilization, is an example of a higher-­‐level service that actually leads to lower health care costs in the long run. The decrease in cost through coverage, in turn, leads to healthier outcomes for infants born through these services and their mothers, as well as greater utilization of infertility treatment services. Universal insurance mandates covering in vitro fertilization should be implemented at the state level for minimum benefits packages of employee health insurance, since comprehensive coverage results in lower out-­‐of-­‐pocket costs, which therefore leads to lower rates of multiple births and increased utilization of infertility treatment services. As a recommendation, each state’s legislation should implement insurance mandates, but these mandates should also set limits on the number of cycles of IVF performed, in order to effectively control costs, promote healthier outcomes, and encourage utilization. The paper proceeds as follows. Section I presents the basic facts of infertility. Section II outlines the main issue of infertility treatment and its negative consequences. After describing what has been done so far to solve the problems surrounding infertility treatment in section III, I provide an explanation of the support and backlash that has been expressed regarding these solutions thus far in section IV. Section V details my own proposal for attempting to fix the problems concerning infertility treatment. Finally, Section VI concludes the argument, and presents a potentially threatening hindrance to implementation