Numbers Game

In more ways than one, the infertility game is also a numbers game. I do my best to stay away from statistics because the ugly truth is the statistics are UGLY! There is no treatment that is 100% guaranteed to get you pregnant. But as hard we we try to avoid the negatives, there is one numbers game we have not been able to avoid, the cost of IVF.

Vance and I are EXTREMELY lucky to have insurance coverage for infertility. (I am covered by a company based out of NJ, in case you were curious) So since we started this journey, all of my ultrasounds, sonograms, triggers, etc have been 100% covered along with my co-pay. All 12 of our IUIs were covered as well. When we started the IVF cycle, I called insurance about 20 times to make sure things were going to be covered and I was assured, 20 times, they were. Fast forward to a week before March 18th. The loop hole we'd been so desperately trying to avoid finally showed its ugly head.

So Dr. Silverberg (We are with Texas Fertility Center, http://www.txfertility.com/) is definitely a in-network Dr. We are totally covered with him and his office. However, the company they use here in Austin for fertility laboratory services (semen analysis, freezing semen and embryos, egg retrieval, ISCI, transfer etc.) is NOT in-network. So what did that mean to us exactly??? That meant that Any service they provided would have to be paid for out of pocket and then we would file for a reimbursement from our insurance company. Doesn't that sound like the most fun EVER!!!

So here's how the cookie crumbled for us. We started shelling out the dough on February 18th for this first cycle of IVF and today, April 19th, I made the final balance payment. All in all this round cost us $7,804.74. And just as a little reminder, that's with nothing to show for it. I know that sounds pretty bitter and it's exactly how I felt a couple days ago seeing where as Sunday I found out the test was negative and Monday I found out I owed an additional $2,785.00 before they could submit our reimbursement paperwork. Talk about adding insult to injury.

Sunday was rough, but my Monday I was starting to feel normal again...until that call! I immediately lost it again. I started thinking HOW IN THE WORLD are we going to be able to shell out about $8K for each try. Giving our IUI track record, if I did the quick math that would equate to ninety six THOUSAND DOLLARS! It was like a sucker punch to the face and I don't even know what that means!!!!! Now please don't misunderstand me. I know how lucky we are to have coverage for the rest and how lucky we are to even be considered for reimbursement, but having to come up with $8K is not an easy feat for us. It makes me sick to my stomach. And although this is priority #1 for us, we still have a life to live and things we want to do. There has to be happy things to look forward to in between all the not happy things. Not sure I have shared this with you guys, but Vance and I (99% Vance, 1% Me) have been renovating our first house since we moved in June of 2011. We have our master bathroom left and the front and back exterior before we are 100% done!!! My husband rocks. :) But it's hard to be able to budget for those projects while budgeting for baby making. It can very easily get discouraging! Again, please don't take as me complaining about ALL the things we have, this is just the thought process we go through as we are living this journey.

So for now, we wait. Our MOST FAVORITE thing to do in the whole wide world! We wait for the reimbursement, we wait for our next appointment (April 22nd), we wait for our next cycle and we wait for our hearts to heal and for our jar of hope and faith to fill back up. We have faith that all these things will happen in time. Again, thanks for lending your ear/eyes.

*One thing I wanted to share with you, just in case someone reading along is from Texas, is Maverick's Miracle Babies. This awesome non-profit was started by a couple who went through infertility treatments themselves and saw a need and a desire to help those who have to follow in their footsteps. They have put together a grant you can apply for, as long as you meet all the eligibility requirements. I think applications are due pretty soon. Here is the link to eligibility requirements and the grant application, http://mavericksmiraclebabies.org/qualifications/.