Document Type
Student Note
Abstract
Infertility treatments have become more accessible and widely used in the last 20 years. As more couples look to these treatments in their struggle to start a family, health insurers are lagging behind in coverage for these options. For the majority of women in the country, paying for infertility treatment out-ofpocket is unrealistic. Not all states have approached this issue but those who have vary in their approach. Some are utilizing either mandate-to-cover for private insurers or Medicaid coverage to attempt to make treatments and diagnosis more accessible. Without policy solutions, the inequality of access between socioeconomic statuses will remain. This Note will analyze the current statutes and proposed legislation and recommend what lawmakers should propose to solve this disparity in access. With West Virginia’s rate of Medicaid use, expansion of coverage through Medicaid would be the most beneficial to women suffering with infertility in the state. This Note will argue that infertile women with low socioeconomic status are receiving unequal treatment since they are prohibited the opportunity to start a family due to the exorbitant costs of fertility treatments and lack of mandated coverage by insurance, and that a limited coverage of fertility drugs by Medicaid would help to alleviate this burden.
Recommended Citation
Samantha Wilson, The Socioeconomic Gap of Infertility: Medicaid Coverage of Infertility Treatments in West Virginia, 126 W. Va. L. Rev. 331 (2023).