Dealing With Fertility Treatments

In the continuing weeklong series "After I Do," The Early Show examines the ups and downs of married life from the honeymoon to the golden years.

It is estimated that nearly ten percent of married couples are involuntarily infertile. And for many of them, the anguish of trying to have a baby can test their marriage as never before.

Wednesday, we take a look at at how children can interfere with a marriage and our guest expert will show couples how to take a "since the kids" quiz.

The following are some fertility statistics:

• ART(Assisted Reproductive Technology) accounts for approximately 0.8% of total births each year.
• As of 1995 in any given year, approximately 10% of the total population will require some kind of infertility treatment. Only 50% of those people will actually seek treatment, 12% will get the treatment and 2% will require ART.
• Costs per cycle for in-vitro fertilization generally run from $15,000-$20,000. The price depends on the type of procedure being done, whether or not donor eggs are being used and whether or not extra embryos are being stored by cryopreservation (eggs being frozen for later use).
• While IVF and other assisted reproductive technologies are not inexpensive, they account for only three hundredths of one percent (0.03%) of U.S. health care costs. Insurance coverage is minimal nationally, although a few states have laws requiring insurance coverage. In some states a few companies actually cover the procedures or part of the procedure.
• States that have Infertility Insurance Laws are: Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas, and West Virginia. If a state is not listed it does not have a relevant law. Each state has it's own laws regarding coverage.
• In 1999 there were 399 ART clinics in the United States.
• In 1999 there were 86,822 (this number excludes cycles in which gestational carriers or new treatment procedures were used) ART cycles reported; so Brian and Karen are not alone in their plight for a child.
• 30,285 is the number of live babies born as a result of ART cycles carried out in 1999.