For Fertility Treatment, Wounded Veterans Have To Pay The Bill
Date Posted: Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Category: Health Care - Maine
Matt Keil came home with a "Christopher Reeve'-type injury." The Keils wanted to have children, but they'd need in vitro fertilization. It's a very expensive procedure costing on average at least $12,000 per cycle of treatment, according to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. The Department of Defense health care system covers IVF for wounded service members, but the Department of Veterans Affairs does not due to "Veterans Health Care Act of 1992," Public Law 102-585. Recently, Senator Murray's (WA) "S.469 - Women Veterans and Families Health Services Act of 2015" was blocked as other attempts have been in the past. Fertility clinics around the nation offer discounted IVF rates for veterans self-funding the procedure. The Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology provides a "Service to Veterans" list of participating clinics at: https://www.sartcorsonline.com/ServiceToVeterans.aspx.
Read the full article at: Maine Public Broadcasting Network