IVF Financing

Annabelle76 · May 2012

G'Morning, I have a question for those that are financing IVF right now. How did/are you doing it?

My RE called on Monday and informed me that while DH SA increased and is at a level we could get pregnant the chances are slim that we would. His Testosterone level is on the low side of normal and if he starts therapy for that his count will diminish. We were told IUI would give us <20% chance each time of getting pregnant. There is nothing wrong with me, in fact, for being 35 she said that I was pretty fertile.

My doctor has a shared risk program of up to 6 fresh cycles for $22K and then they offer financial assistance up to 30% if you qualify. My insurance doesn't cover it at all and that 22K doesn't even cover the meds. Like everyone in this economy, we are getting by, but not enough to wish away money. I know that if we don't succeed we get the money back, but it seems like so much and it's holding me back. I am just starting to wonder if maybe we aren't meant to have children and that hurts my heart more than not having the money for IVF. Thanks so much for listening to a lurker.

Edwina.McDunnough · May 2012

It's a priority for us so we make it happen. No one here is without sacrifices, and if you want other things more that is perfectly fine, but it's not some higher power making that decision for you, it's your own choice. I understand that it is scary and OOP sucks, don't get me wrong, but it sounds like you have the means and you are already getting a break, which is a lot more than a lot of people here have. GL with your decision.

Also, there are options for those paying for meds OOP.

Annabelle76 · May 2012

It's not a matter of wanting other things, it's a matter of contiuing to pay the bills and not declaring bankruptcy because I can't pay them. Needless to say we didn't think we would run into this issue when we started out (nobody does!).

I have already cut everything to the bare necessities as it is. I am just wondering how to do it even more. What options are there for paying for the meds?

delino · May 2012

I understand where you're coming from. We have the funds to do a couple of rounds of IVF, if necessary, but it's stressful to deplete our backup stash. I'm a planner, having my budget going out through 2013 and it's scary to think about using up our savings which I was relying on to get us through maternity leave and help pay for daycare or if one of us lost our job. $22k for 6 cycles is an amazing deal, but for me I decided to take it one cycle at a time. As for the meds...like PP said, do your research and try to find ways to save money. Talk to your clinic...I was able to get my meds through their donation program where those with coverage donate their unused meds. Good luck!

Edwina.McDunnough · May 2012

Many pharmacies have discount programs for those paying OOP. Many manufacturers have discount programs. Some people get their meds overseas and save more than half the cost.

Sorry if I misread your post, it sounded a lot like you just don't want to spend the money. People here save, a lot. Some take out loans or whatever, but a full guarantee program is a luxury, not a necessity. It doesn't make sense that you'd "go bankrupt" to pay for something that is not even a required part of cycling. If that is your priority and a requirement then you'll save for longer than otherwise, but again, it's your decision.

Just something to think about, if you have the money to buy a purebred Labrador as a birthday present, then why are you worried about going bankrupt? You got a lot of good advice on the Pets board regarding that decision, and you didn't like those answers a bit, so I can't imagine you'll like ones from this board either. At least from me.

Annabelle76 · May 2012

Edwina, thank you for re-reading the post. It isn't that I don't want to. In fact I am doing everything in my power in order to find a way to finance this. I am not afraid of going bankrupt on cycling as much as I am afraid of putting us in a financial hole that we can't climb out of. We are trying to sell our house, and then buy back home. My DH was out of work for 2 years depleting our savings and he now works but not full time and doesn't have a college degree so he doesn't make that much money. That is fine since I make up the rest, but with the cost of everything going up in society and my job (with the gov't) not giving cost of living increases or raises in the last few years it has me constantly sitting on a pin waiting and watching the bank account.

Sorry...this turned into a money vent more than anything else.

ermo515 · May 2012

I think all of us here do whatever we can to find the money for IVF...If its your priority, then you will find a way to do it. If its not, then maybe its not worth it for you...Thats for you two as a couple to decide.

For us, being childless wasnt an option so it was our priority. We cut back and made sacrifices in ever way that we could. My husband temporarily (well its been 2 years) changed his career to make a little extra money. I turned down a tenured job for a temporary position that was in a city that had a great clinic. We lived apart for a year. Our savings for a downpayment on a house was wiped away. With this and by saving a little every month and being super super frugal, we were able to most pay for IVF in about 20 months. We ended up doing the shared risk program bc for us, coming up with an additional 15,000 if it failed was a scary idea...we would rather save a little longer and put the extra 7,000 upfront and take a gamble. We are glad we did bc we ended up pregnant and miscarried after IVF #1...That gamble allowed us to immediately without hesitation get back on the saddle and cycle again...Im glad too bc that just gave us a BFP! Otherwise it would have been months before we could have saved up again. Its all personal choice really. I know plenty of people who it has worked for the 1st time, but plenty who it hasnt...you really just cant predict before you do it.

Its a hard move to pay so much for something that should be covered by insurance but ultimately it is your choice. We considered it an investment for our future..

Good luck!

mnj05 · May 2012

You've gotten some great advice so far! I agree your shared risk program sounds like a great deal, should you choose to go that route. We are taking this one cycle at a time. We have saved most of the money (before meds) and will take out a small loan if need be. I am a teacher and get paid once a month at the end of the month, and could use my next paycheck to pay off or nearly pay off that loan, depending on how much we might have to take out. The flip side of that is our savings is completely gone and we just cut back and will continue cutting back until our savings builds back up some.

It's definitely hard being OOP for everything and hearing all the cost going into IVF. I'll be swiping my card in a few weeks and that's going to be rough. Look into donation programs, I've gotten one thing already that will save us about $660-$700 for that one vial of drug alone.

I know it's overwhelming, but take it slow and research. Good luck to you!

dcox777 · May 2012

one thing I learned this last cycle that saved money....my RE called in my drugs to one pharmacy and it was different than the last one so out of curiosity I took it upon myself to call the specialty pharmacy that we used prior because I really liked their service, etc... well turns out because they are bigger and do more business they actually had coupons, yes coupons, for my most expensive medication. Insurance did pay part of the medications but not all. In the end the Bravelle alone I was on would have cost me $3700 out of pocket and the coupons saved in $600 so I only paid $3100!! I was thrilled. so I had my RE cancel my order from the original pharmacy and send it to "old" one instead.

Just a thought on a way to make costs more manageable. Doing things like that and using a shared by plan like others have mentioned are great. Many clinics do that these days. mine had one called www.attainivf.com but we couldn't use it at all since our insurance did pay part of IVF. (we were very lucky some was covered)

best of luck to you!!

SASSY1JA · May 2012

I strongly reccomend the shared plan if you can swing it. My biggest regret so far was deciding to do IVF#1 as a converted cycle from a failed (over responded) IUI. I hadn't done much research yet as I wasn't sure I was comfortable with doing IVF and honestly was praying it wouldn't come to that. We then had to make a decision with in an hour to convert or loose all the money we had already put foward. I was completly not ready for this.

If we had waited we would have saved 10K. Given the option I would have done the shared risk hands down but at the time I didn't know there were any shared risk options in our area. (right now there is only one in my state and really at the time they may not have been doing it either)

The way we are looking at it right now is yes, if it works we may be paying another 8K more than needed but if it takes a 3rd try we saved money. Plus I am so much more relaxed this time around knowing this isn't my one and only shot, we have another 2-5 tries. To me to decrease the stress about finances on what if it doesn't work is very much worth the extra money on the shared risk plan. Plus if we get any to freeze we get a years worth of storage for free so if it does work we could still be saving money if we go for a FET right away on our second.

I'll add we were planning on taking out a financing loan through our clinic the rates were better than any credit card or bank that I could find. But we lwere ucky to be able to take a loan from my parents. It's not ideal but it saves us a few thousand in interest. I came up with a quarterly amount that we will pay them over 5 years. This is a HUGE help to us as we spent nearly all our savings on the first IVF.

maggie2324 · May 2012

We had a poll on income on this board not too long ago and I found out that we were one of a few with the lowest income. We are only 2 years out of college and I haven't found a full time job, so I'm working <15 hrs a week for $10/hr. DH makes good money for right out of college, but it doesn't really make up for only having one income. We just paid OOP for IVF easily. It really only put a small dent in our savings.

What we do: Drive older cars with no car payment, no smart phones, use fans and not air conditioning, keep heat in winter at 62 during daytime and 58 at night, shop at Aldi for groceries, we don't eat out more than once a month (includes fast food, coffee, etc), I get my hair cut once a year, I cut DHs hair myself, no new clothes/shoes unless absolutely necessary ($100/year approx), no cable tv, we drink water from the tap and don't buy any other beverages except milk, we wash clothes only when dirty - underwear/undershirts are the only thing washed after one wear typically, we don't go out to the movies or spend any money on entertainment.

So, you think you can find some ways to cut back? If not, there are loans, 0% interest credit cards, etc.

We did get a portion of our meds for free through Fertility Lifelines compassionate care program. It is income based so you may qualify.

As for IUIs, we were hoping for a 8% chance with IUI, but couldn't get anywhere close to that. Having <20% chance is normal.... In fact 15% is the number I hear most often as GOOD odds, so it sounds like IUIs are a good choice for you based on that alone.

jessi1988 · May 2012

Honestly, I'm not going to lie the cost sucks! We are doing our first IVF cycle this summer and took out more money on our personal line of credit to do so. We have made sacrifices for sure, but not so much that we aren't enjoying life. We are cutting our home phone because we have cell phones, not going out to eat at restaurants like we used to, not buying new clothes etc unless really needed.

We are also fortunate enough to have been offered most of the money for our cycle from family, so that is a huge huge blessing. But, not one we were expecting and had full plans to pay this ourselves.

What is your DH's opinion on spending the money?

wille2b · May 2012

loans, loans, and oh ya, some more loans...

Annabelle76 · May 2012

Thanks ladies! I really appreciate it. DH is not about taking out loans if we don't have to. But when I told him his diagnosis and told him that I can't believe we will never have children he told me to do what I had to do to look for money to do this. In the same discussion though he wants to get his testosterone back in a good place and any kind of therapy is going to kill his sperm so it has to be sooner than later.

With my student loans, we only really have the house my jeep and a few credit cards that are outstanding debt. I have been researching today and am applying quickly for the Cade Foundation Grant, apparently they have a money set aside for my clinic as well as other grant money. I just need to get the application done by June 1st. There are a few other things I am looking into...so hopefully there is something there!

Want a personalized experience?

IVF Financing

Re: IVF Financing

Choose Another Board

Search Boards