My SIL's sister had 2 unsuccessful IVF's at this clinic but she was very happy with the care from the RE and staff. (She adopted a sweet 14 month old boy from R.ussia since then.) Originally, my plan was to save enough for most of an IVF cycle in 18 months (13 months to go). Now, this offer is causing me to re-think that plan. The price is not that much of a savings if it works the first time, which- if that happened, I wouldn't care anyway!!! But it does seem to be a really good deal if it didn't work the first time. I'm not sure if it includes meds or not---I played phone tag with them last week. The IVF cycle has to be started by Sept. 1, 2009... PC & I will be in the middle of building a house (haven't blogged much about that- but we've decided that the time & price are right). Now, let me say if I became pregnant at ANY time, I would shout it from the rooftop & be thrilled!!! But if my future path to pregnancy requires IVF (right now day 14 of AF & no end in sight is looking like IVF is my only hope), I wanted it to be at a time of "less stress" (than usual) & have most of the money to cover it. So, I'm trying to weigh the options here. I'm definitely going to take advantage of the free diagnostic evaluation and get a feel for the RE office & staff. No insurance for infertility procedures just plain 'ol sucks!!! Others out there... what do y'all think about this offer?
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Looks like a fairly good deal. I would guess that this price does not include meds which will run probably around 2-4k per cycle. Sometimes you can get donations or cheaper meds other places. A few questions I would have are does this price cover any FET's if you had embryos left over and if not how much would an FET be. Would they insist you do an FET with any frozen embryos before continuing on to a second fresh cycle. Also I would go to CDC or ASRM's site and research their statistics of success. If you need help with that you can respond to this or e-mail me and I can try to help.
I think it's a good deal, but I'm guessing it doesn't cover meds and monitoring as it's not listed. This could get pricey depending on your response. I guess it's just a package deal and not a shared-risk plan? I am in a shared-risk plan at my clinic, which cose $25k, and covers 3 IVF cycles, ICSI, assisted hatching, cryopreservation, all FETs, meds and monitoring. If I don't bring home a 30 day old baby, I get 100% back. I already did IVF #1, 3 FETs (1 with a GC) and am gearing up for IVF#2. We haven't paid a dime since we handed over $25K in '07. Obviously it's been worth it for us.
I'd guess it does cover monitoring but not meds, but that's just a guess.
Yes, it's a good deal (if it's a good clinic), and personally I think if you need IVF and are in a position to proceed to it, it's a mistake to wait. I wish I hadn't, as I'll always wonder whether I'd have had an easier time conceiving had we started earlier. And though I got lucky and had a son, I now want another child and at 40, I know the odds of conceiving with my own eggs are slim. All of which is my way of saying there are downsides to waiting.
However, beyond price, I would check on where FETs fit in the package (is a FET a "cycle?") whether cryopreservation is included, what happens if a cycle gets canceled, and how quickly you have to move to cycle 2 if you need it. Also what counts as "success."
I go to this clinic and signed on this deal two weeks ago. There is no small print. I looked carefully for it. I expected some 'catch'. I paid 13,500. The only thing not included are meds and any pre-cycle testing (we had already done our entire workup). This covers 2 fresh transfers and any resulting frozen transfers until live birth. You must start cycling before September 1st. You can call and they will answer any questions you have about it.
Of course in life, as in IVF, there are no promises...but this deal at least provides me with some comfort knowing I am 'paid up' for awhile.
I start stims at the end of the week and expect retrieval the first week of May.
Oh, also you cannot finance with them on this deal...you have to pay up front or secure your own private financing.
Hi Miss Mac,
I'm sorry to hear about your struggle and want to thank you for sharing this experience.
I'm a physician and former faculty member at Harvard and Stanford Medical Schools. I discovered your blog while looking for the best health writers on the web. I reviewed your posts, and think your writing would be a great addition to the Pregnancy & Fertility Community on Wellsphere, a top 5 health website that has nearly 5 million visitors monthly. If you would like to learn more about how you can join our Health Blogger Network, republish your blog posts and be featured on the Wellsphere platform, just drop me an email at dr.rutledge@wellsphere.com.
Cheers,
Geoff
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