I am not sure that Health Care Reform will benefit anyone....I have read the pros and the cons until I don't know who to believe....read below and tell me what YOU think!
Sharon
Problems getting pregnant? You're not alone. One in 10 couples experience problems conceiving. Growing up, getting married, having children and ultimately grandchildren, is the natural order of the life cycle … unless you experience infertility.
This interrupts the natural order of life and creates tremendous emotional struggles for couples facing this problem.
In actuality, for women, infertility increases with age, with a rapid decline after the age of 40. For men, there is no significant change in sperm production until after age 60.
The basic workup during an infertility assessment includes evaluation of three common factors known to cause infertility: problems with ovulation, fallopian tube blockage and male factor with decrease in sperm production.
Ovulatory problems account for about 30 percent of infertility and are commonly associated with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), classically a triad of obesity, hirsutism and irregular menstrual cycles.
Obese women will more often have disturbances in ovulation because of the estrogen secretion from fat cells (adipocytes). They also have a decreased response to fertility medications to correct the ovulatory problems, lower success rates and higher pregnancy loss rates.
Male factor accounts for 40 percent of infertility problems. Men with varicoceles (varicose veins) surrounding the testes have a higher incidence of infertility.
Men also experience hormonal disturbances and infections, just as women, that may cause infertility.
Tubal disease with scarring from inflammatory processes associated with endometriosis and pelvic infections, such as chlamydia or gonorrhea, or previous surgeries, may interfere with the fallopian tubes' ability to pick up the egg after ovulation occurs and allowing the sperm to fertilize the egg.
Unfortunately, with health care today, employers do not generally include infertility coverage in their benefits.
Having a family is seen as an elective or an option, making fertility treatments uncovered. When coverage is provided, it varies from just the initial consult and diagnostic test technologies such as in vitro fertilization (IVF). About 12 states have mandated coverage for fertility services. Tennessee is not one of them.
Perhaps, with the new health-care reform bill, that will change.
By not having coverage, infertile couples may undergo cheaper and riskier procedures with lower success rates because of cost. Surgeries may be performed in an attempt to correct tubal disease that would be best treated by IVF.
Multiple pregnancy risks are increased when injectable fertility medications are used instead of IVF, but these are less expensive options for women, so they may go that route.
Finally, remember this: For most couples seeking fertility treatment, more than 80 percent successfully achieve their dream of becoming parents through the multitude of fertility treatment options available today.
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Dr. Gloria Richard-Davis is chairwoman and professor of Reproductive Endocrinologist and Infertility, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and associate director of the Center for Women Health Research at Meharry Medical College.
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