Advocacy

1 in 8 couples struggle with infertility in the United States. I am one of them. 

In 2020, I learned that my recurrent miscarriages were the result of what’s called a “balanced chromosome inversion.” Essentially, I was born with a section of one of my fifth chromosomes being upside down. Inversions fall under the umbrella of structural chromosome rearrangements, which generally only impact a person when they try to have children. Though my inversion is rare, chromosome rearrangements overall can impact up to 1 out of 500 people. Women like me, who have difficulty bringing healthy pregnancies to term, fall under the umbrella of infertility.

My particular case represents one of many where IVF is the doctor-recommended course of action even when conceiving naturally is possible. 

Though infertility is recognized as a disease by the American Medical Association, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the World Health Organization, its known cures are often regarded as elective procedures and are typically not covered by insurance policies. Individual states can decide whether insurance companies must offer IVF coverage and whether any of it will be paid for. Currently, only 13 states have passed IVF insurance laws, and California isn’t one of them. California requires group insurers to offer infertility coverage (but not pay for it) and this excludes IVF. 

I am on a mission to change California law. To become an advocate for equitable healthcare coverage and reproductive justice, visit my infertility website and become an advocate with Resolve, the National Infertility Association.