Individual Health Insurance Rarely Covers IVF In US, More Embryos Transferred

Although many people think that the more embryos implanted during IVF, the greater chance you will have a successful pregnancy, the UK's University of Glasgow has found the opposite to be true. Europe has strict guidelines regarding the number of embryos that can be implanted during IVF, unlike the US. This is probably because IVF is paid for in many European countries. Individual health insurance, or group for that matter, in America rarely covers fertility treatments like IVF. Since the cost can start at $10,000 per treatment, Americans tend to implant more embryos in the hopes that it will give them a greater chance of having a baby.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine issues recommendations for embryo transfers, but they are rarely followed and not regulated. For women under 35, they recommend 1 embryo be transferred, 2-3 embryos for women 35-37, and 3-4 embryos for women 38-40. In contrast, the Western European guidelines are often laws and have lower recommendations. For women under 37, they recommend 1 embryo transferred, for ages 37-40 there is a maximum of 2 embryos, and over 40 there is usually a maximum of 3 embryos.

One reason given for the stricter guidelines is that there could be a greater risk of miscarriage and surely a riskier pregnancy with more embryos implanted. But this most recent study also found that there is not a higher likelihood of a successful pregnancy when three or more embryos are transferred. The women under 40 who were studied had a successful pregnancy 33% of the time with 2 embryos transferred, but only 25% of the time with 3 embryos transferred. In women over 40, the success rate was the same whether 2 or 3 embryos were transferred. We'll see if this study does anything to change American regulations.

This information came from the Associated Press article, "Study finds no better odds using 3 embryos in IVF," by Maria Cheng.