Considering fertility options - private health care?

time2deal

I was TTC for 4 years. Most of my friends (and family, and acquaintances...) have had TWO kids in that time! It all become irrelevant the moment it works.

My case is a bit extreme, as I was diagnosed and treated for cancer in the middle, but even then it eventually worked.

InsideInsurance

The below is all theoretical as in this case you are aware of problems and therefore it'd be pre-existing and excluded given you dont already have PMI in place already.

PMI will not cover infertility in the UK directly. That said, if for example if you have an underlying condition and you just didnt know about it that happens to be causing infertility then it may be that PMI could be used to fix the underlying condition that may remove the infertility.

I knew someone who had problems conceiving but had PMI in place for years, tests were done on fertility and the issues were male. Blood tests showed T levels were far too low. A scan showed he had a tumor and further bloods showed other hormones from that gland were also low.

As the issue was wider than just infertility the PMI dealt with the tumor, thankfully not cancer, and after that was done his levels increased and a year or so later they announced they were pregnant.

CreditCrunchie

Part of me secretly likes the 2ww. Frustrating as i found it the first few months, i now like to hold on to the little bit of hope I get each time, am i, ARENT i? ooh the possibilities off now to register at my local GP (just moved house), so doubt i will get an appointment for a week or so.

sacha28

Oh bless you! You don't get charged for any of the investigations, that is why you make national insurance contributions! (I don't say that in a sarcastic manner btw)

Person_one

CreditCrunchie wrote: »

Congratulations to all of you expecting, your stories are inspiring Since ttc 2 friends hve announced they are expecting, and 2 more that they are having/ have had an abortion. very hard to cope with as we haven't told anyone we're trying (thank goodness as could not cope with people feeling sorry for us).

Only reason i was considering private was because i assumed nhs would charge for tests/ treatment and it would be easier to pay a set monthly amount into private than have to pay big bills up front to nhs. If this isn't the case then there's no problem.

Now I feel daft lol

A founding principle of the NHS and still a cornerstone of its constitution is that treatment must be based on clinical need not the ability to pay and must be free at the point of care.

You pay your NI, that's your NHS insurance policy, the only things you ever need to pay for out of pocket are dental costs and the prescription charge. :T

hawk30

I can do nothing but praise the NHS, because without their funding I would not have my LO. 4 years of hell eventually turning into 9 months of worry (having had previous miscarriages) cumulating into one beautiful and much wanted baby. Yes, it's a bit slow and they impose restrictions (I remember weeping frantically when they said they were going to make me wait another 6 months, which fortunately made the doctor change her mind and send off my IVF referral), but I'm grateful for everything they did.

But it's early days for you. Go to the docs and have the tests; there may be a problem they can find or treatment they can offer.

notanewuser

Person_one wrote: »

A founding principle of the NHS and still a cornerstone of its constitution is that treatment must be based on clinical need not the ability to pay and must be free at the point of care.

You pay your NI, that's your NHS insurance policy, the only things you ever need to pay for out of pocket are dental costs and the prescription charge. :T

Sadly nothing was built in about timescales though, so referrals etc can take forever!

LilElvis

Check with your CCG what the criteria are for NHS IVF/fertility treatment - it's usually available on their website. This should give you an indication as to the maximum age they will treat, number of cycles they will fund etc. And if either of you has a BMI over 30 then you will probably need to look at losing weight ASAP as this is a definite for causing delays to investigations and treatment as well as decreasing your chances of success, both naturally and with treatment.

Good luck!

toniq

You might not need ivf , usually the start point is clomid. Thousands fall on clomid alone, before anything invasive is needed.

Good luck, Mine was a very costly journey too have my Jessica, £27,000 over 6 years.

codemonkey

OP I don't wish to scare you, but we were ttc for 3 years before I could persuade DH to agree to tests. I set the ball rolling with my GP and I sat in that waiting room wanting to run away but he was very reassuring and ordered blood tests - Day 21 progesterone to see if I was ovulating and day 2 bloods to check my hormones were ok. My DH had to do 2 SAs before we were referred to the fertility clinic.

I was quite impressed with the NHS fertility clinic. Assuming you meet the criteria, here in Scotland you get 2 free goes - I know it's different everywhere.

As it turns out we could have been trying until I went into menopause and it wouldn't have happened because DH has a chromosomal abnormality that means his sperm count is zero, so we're currently coming to terms with being childless.

Scary as it all sounds, if you've been trying for so long and nothing is happening, its worth getting it all checked out, because even if there is a problem, most things can be fixed.

Also, I'd advise using everything the NHS has to offer (unless you want to hurry up tests) before using the private options. Fertility treatment is costly and can take a long time.