Here’s What IVF Companies Should Be Telling You About Bulk Billing

Fertility medicine is all about the percentages. Patients hoping to increase their chances of getting pregnant turn to fertility treatments, such as in vitro fertilization, because their natural odds have not been working out. Unfortunately, because fertility treatments only boost rather than guarantee chances of conception, many couple find themselves at the end of treatments not with a pregnancy, but rather empty bank accounts. Some fertility clinics maintain financial counselors on staff who will refer clients to less expensive options upon request; and there are fertility clinics that specialize in providing these lower cost treatments for couples who are running through funds in their quest to conceive.

Part of the reason fertility treatments have been so expensive in the past was they were provided by individual doctors in less prominent medical facilities; specialty medicine, in other words. As fertility medicine becomes more established, the number of both providers and facilities is rising. And that is bringing costs to patients down as who and where they can turn to for the medical assistance goes up.

Despite this, fertility medicine remains more of a business than pure medicine. In Australia, for example, some clinics see revenue numbers upwards of half a billion dollars annually. And clients are often encouraged to submit to numerous cycles of treatment, being told it will increase their odds. Fertility patients should consider looking into bulk billed, rather than private, providers to lower their costs.