CHR - Press Relations
CHR Blog: IVF clinics scrambling
It was left to the New York Post (Hillary Kramer, May, 24, 2009) to be the first media outlet to notice that IVF clinics are scrambling in battling the recession. Three principal reasons explain why infertility, after plastic surgery, is probably the most affected medical specialty area by this deep and lengthy recession.
A first cause for the current difficulties even preceded onset of the recession and is the consequence of simple demographics: Most Baby Boomers, based on age alone, are no longer interested in making babies. The generation following the Boomers is inherently smaller, and the declining number of IVF cycles performed in the U.S. was, therefore, even before the recession hit, not predicted to recover to past peaks till approximately 2011. The recession now even further reduced IVF cycle numbers. Who then can be surprised that many IVF centers are scrambling?
The recession affected the field in a number of ways: In the U.S. fertility services are often not, or only partially, covered under standard health insurance programs. Those lucky enough to have coverage, and to have held on to their jobs, are often fearful of disclosing that they plan to conceive and/or of taking time off for required treatments. Those who lost their employment often lost with it whatever insurance coverage they had and, finally, those who did not have insurance in the first place, like all of us, feel significantly poorer, and often are, therefore, hesitant to spend money out of pocket.
Add to this the psychological aspects of any recession, characterized by general insecurity and pessimism, and it is not surprising that people think twice before having another child.
A physician interviewed by The Post predicted that current economic conditions would lead to consolidation of IVF centers through mergers, with some even going out of business. As some IVF centers are scrambling to survive, to compete, the newspaper reports that IVF centers across the country have started offering discounts “of $2,000 to 6,000,- and more.” We have heard of declines in cycle numbers at some centers that approach up to 50 percent.
Considering the considerable overhead costs of IVF, especially the larger reported discounts in The Post appear somewhat exaggerated because such large discounts would swipe IVF centers very quickly towards persistent losses. Since businesses have to be profitable, and nobody can operate at a loss for long (see U.S. car manufacturers!), and since even President Obama, with all of his sympathies towards reproductive rights, only very unlikely will designate IVF centers for the next federal bale out, IVF will have to find its own solutions for survival and prosperity.
CHR, probably because of the highly specialized services we offer within the specialty, has, so far, not experienced the decline in IVF cycles reported by other centers. Indeed, cycle numbers for the first four months of the year are even running slightly ahead of our 2008 numbers. This, of course, does not mean that we are immune to the downturn in the economy. It does, however, mean that CHR so far has not seen reasons to experiment with the center’s competitive fee structure.
It is also important to note that, even before the recession, CHR in good old-fashioned medical tradition, and as a service to the community, has been offering on a sliding scale an array of income-dependent discount programs to financially qualified patients. These programs, under current economic circumstances, have become much more popular, as many more patients qualify for them. CHR is pleased to be in the financial position to offer such discounts, not out of economic necessity, but as a humanitarian gesture to those who, otherwise, would not be financially able to receive fertility treatments.
THE CHR
Media contact: 212-994-4400 x.4491 CHR's Media Blog is a compilation of potential story ideas gathered from infertility-related news, our research, and our opinion to facilitate open communication with the public on this increasingly relevant field of medicine.
Editors, reporters and producers are invited to contact CHR for background or clarification on any content posted here. Also, our team of fertility experts has considerable experience providing comments for publication on infertility-related subjects and participating on broadcast panels to share our expertise.
