The CVS Health company Aetna announced a "landmark policy change" on Tuesday, that it would expand its coverage of fertility services to include intrauterine insemination (IUI) as a medical benefit for eligible plans. It is the first major health insurer to do so.
“Expanding IUI coverage is yet another demonstration of Aetna’s commitment to women’s health across all communities, including LGBTQ+ and unpartnered people,” Dr. Cathy Moffitt, Senior Vice President and Aetna Chief Medical Officer of CVS Health, said in a press release. "This industry-leading policy change is a stake in the ground, reflecting Aetna's support of all who need to use this benefit as a preliminary step in building their family."
IUI, sometimes called artificial insemination, is a procedure that helps with infertility—affecting one in six people worldwide—by boosting the chances of pregnancy. It works by having a medical provider insert specially prepared sperm directly in the uterus at the time of ovulation in hopes that the sperm and egg will meet up in the fallopian tube, leading to pregnancy.
The procedure is most often used, according to the Mayo Clinic, for the following reasons:
- If someone is using donor sperm
- As a first-line treatment for unexplained infertility
- To treat infertility related to endometriosis
- To help with subfertility (meaning the man's sperm has size, shape, or motility issues, which can be addressed through the pre-insemination part of IUI)
- To treat infertility related to the cervix or ovulation
- In the case of rare semen allergy
IUI is different from in-vitro fertilization (IVF), which is more a more complex procedure involving egg stimulation through injectable hormones, egg retrieval, lab fertilization and eventual transfer of lab-created embryos to the uterus.
Aetna's announcement comes on the heels of the Democratic National Convention, which highlighted access to reproductive care through many featured speakers, including vice presidential candidate Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota, who has made it a point to talk about his family's struggle with infertility. "If you've never experienced the hell that is infertility, I guarantee you you know somebody who has," he said during his Aug. 21 speech onstage at the DNC in Chicago.
Walz and his wife Gwen spent years trying to have their two children, using IUI for assistance, according to various reports.
Aetna’s updated coverage policy begins nationwide on September 1, 2024 for many plans and will be effective on a rolling basis for most plans on renewal.
The insurer's move was praised by FOLX, a nationwide health care provider for LGBTQ+ clients.
“We know firsthand the barriers people face in accessing needed medical care to start or grow their families,” said FOLX Chief Clinical Officer Kate Steinle in the Aetna press release. “As an in-network provider focused on the LGBTQ+ community, we applaud Aetna’s efforts to reduce out-of-pocket costs, so that more people can have the families they dream of—and deserve."
CVS Health is a sponsor of Fortune WELL.
For more on infertility:
- This tech exec’s infertility struggle was a ‘nightmare’ at work. What she wants you to know
- The global ‘spermpocalypse’ proves infertility is no longer just a women’s problem, says male fertility CEO
- Stress and infertility are connected—but 4 mindfulness strategies can help with both
