New legislation requires some insurance companies cover infertility treatments in Colorado
DENVER — Despair. Isolation. Shock. Anger. Those are just a few of the words Colorado State Rep. Kerry Tipper uses to describe her experience with infertility several years ago.
“I can’t tell you how many times we’d leave a couple’s house after they told us they’re pregnant and we’d get back to our car and I would just sob on the way home and my husband would say it’s going to work for us, our road is just different,” recalled Tipper, a Jefferson County Democrat.
World Health Organization statistics show 15% of reproductive aged couples have experienced infertility, which is defined as not being able to get pregnant after one year (six months for women older than 35). Those statistics only include cis-gendered straight couples, but LGBTQ+ people can also experience infertility. Additionally, Black women may be twice as likely to have trouble getting pregnant, according to the CDC.
For families not able to conceive in the traditional way, diagnosis and treatments can cost up to $100,000 out of pocket since insurance companies often do not cover the costs. Nationally, only 17 states required insurance companies to offer coverage for fertility treatments, but Colorado is bringing that number up to 18.
“I’m so excited this bill has passed because it’s the first time Colorado families of every kind won’t have to bear the financial burden of finding ways to start a family,” said Kavita Nair, who Denver local who struggled with infertility.
Almost 20 years ago, Nair discovered she could not become pregnant because of a rare genetic condition. After several years of fertility treatments, miscarriages and spending close to $60,000, Nair and her then-husband were able to have a daughter who is now a freshman in college.
“When I heard about this bill, it immediately took me back to what that process was and how much it changed me,” said Nair.
Nair is talking about Colorado's HB22-1008, a bill that makes large employer insurance plans (for businesses with more than one hundred employees) cover infertility treatments the same way they cover disease treatment. Under the new legislation, recently signed into law by Democratic Governor Jared Polis, patients will make co-pays for medication, medical treatments and doctor’s office visits just like they would for an illness.
Tipper came up with the idea for the bill after she and her husband struggled to get pregnant. “Both of us were pretty healthy and we never thought it would be an issue getting pregnant. Then it became clear that we would need IVF," Tipper said.
IVF stands for in vitro fertilization, a procedure where eggs are removed from a woman and fertilized with sperm outside of the body to form an embryo.
"Ultimately we were successful but it was a lot of money out of pocket, but we now have a healthy baby girl. She’s a year-and-a-half old and she’s transformed both of our lives,” Tipper said.
According to Tipper, the legislation is about providing health care equity for all people who have trouble conceiving a child.
“It’s something we can do to say, 'Hey, we recognize that this is a medical issue and that there’s a potential solution and we want you to have the best shot at accessing that solution,'” she said.
The bill goes into effect in January 2023.
Dana Knowles is a multimedia journalist at Rocky Mountain PBS and can be reached at danaknowles@rmpbs.org.
Brian Willie is the content production manager at Rocky Mountain PBS. You can contact him at brianwillie@rmpbs.org.