Will Insurance Cover IVF After Tubal Ligation?

Will insurance cover IVF after ligation?

We can’t answer right away because there’s so much to explain. As you read, you’ll know whether or not your health insurance firm can step in and cover your bills.

Let’s begin our discussion by reviewing what IVF and tubal reversal mean.

Will Insurance Pay for IVF After Tubal Ligation?

Some women have their tubes tied after having the desired number of children.

It’s their unique way of achieving permanent birth control, and it’s medically called tubal ligation. But after a while, these women may wish to have another baby.

In most cases, tubal reversal may not be a viable option for them. This is where IVF will be introduced as an alternate method for becoming pregnant after such a procedure.

Now, IVF is an assisted reproductive tech that bypasses the fallopian tubes and makes pregnancy possible after tubal ligation.

However, such a procedure is often expensive, and not all women can afford the bills without breaking the bank. So, most return to loans, health insurance, and other means to cover their expenses.

Understanding Tubal Ligation

When they say tubal ligation, it simply means getting your tubes tied. It’s a way of interrupting the fallopian tubes of women to prevent pregnancy.

The procedure involves the surgical removal of the middle section of the fallopian tube. After removal, the tube will be tied or blocked permanently to prevent pregnancy.

Meanwhile, before tubal ligation is conducted, you’ll be given a week of light bed rest.

After that, you’ll pass through the HSG three months later to review the tubes. The procedure can be done at any time, including after childbirth or abdominal surgery.

While women can become pregnant after tubal ligation, most reversal-proof abortive, research indicates only 30–40% of women welcome a baby a year or two after such a procedure.

Tubal ligation reversal requires major surgery, which isn’t always practical.

What About IVF?

The acronym above stands for “in-vitro fertilization. It is a kind of fertilization in which sperm and eggs are mixed in a lab.

The procedure entails keeping an eye on and promoting a woman’s ovulatory cycle. Put another way, female ovaries’ eggs will be extracted, and sperm will fertilize them in a lab culture medium.

Many embryos inserted into the uterus may result in many pregnancy outcomes. It’s referred to as a multiple pregnancy when that occurs.

However, several factors affect your odds of conceiving a healthy child using IVF. They include the reason for your infertility and your age. In addition, the process may be costly, time-consuming, and invasive.

Does Insurance Cover IVF After Tubal Ligation?

The answer is no. Most insurance firms don’t pay for IVF following a tubal ligation.

You can only benefit from their expanding benefits regarding infertility testing and fertility treatments. So, any woman who previously had a tubal ligation should be ready to shoulder her expenses when in need of IVF.

To better understand the coverage around fertility treatments, it’s best to contact your insurance firm. They may have an alternative to lower or pay off your treatment expenses.

If this option doesn’t suffice, you can return to your fertility specialists for affordable financing options. They may be willing to assist you in paying for the treatment you need to expand your family.

Will Insurance Pay Tubal Ligation Side Effects?

It’s another fantastic question to ask. Tubal ligation may come with complications such as pain, heavy periods, and loss of sex drive, among others. This often calls for additional treatment and costs.

But will insurance pay for such complications? The answer is still no. No matter how hard you try, most health insurance will not cover the bills for such complications.

While true, there are companies with generous insurance plans. They’ll allow you to set up a unique health insurance plan to cover part or all of the treatment costs.

But finding such firms is where the problem lies. There are a few of them across the country. So many patients do pay for such treatment out of pocket.

What About Paying For IVF?

Still, many insurance plans need to include IVF in their coverage list.

Therefore, you’ll have to pay any costs associated with your treatment. The few firms that cover such procedures only select those with involuntary tubal ligation.

Most insurance firms don’t pay for non-essential surgery. Whether for breasts, tummy tucks, face lifts, or augmentations, if your tubes are tied, be prepared to pay for any reversal or IVF.

The Procedure of IVF After Tubal Ligation

Having answered the question above, let’s talk about the procedure of IVF after tubal ligation.

The first thing to be done is to take fertility medications. This is to simulate the production of many eggs in the ovaries. Women are required to accept such medications for an average of 8–14 days.

The next stage is egg retrieval. Here, the eggs are allowed to mature before the woman takes a trigger shot.

After that, the eggs will be combined with sperm from the donor, and then the embryonic development will be monitored. The embryologist will freeze any healthy embryos that develop after fertilization.

Up next is urine preparation. The woman will start taking medications to prepare her urine lining for embryo implantation. Once the woman’s uterus is set, one healthy embryo will be transferred.

After that, they will monitor the client for pregnancy.

Reasons IVF Is Necessary Following Tubal Ligation

Sometimes, tubal ligation reversal can go wrong and make natural conception impossible. But that’s not a mysterious occurrence.

Some elements can inhibit fertility after blocking your ovaries. Among these factors are tubal status, female fertility, and male fertility. Let’s explain these variables in detail.

• Tubal status

Generally, leftover tubal stumps that are too short or scarred to reconnect can lower the success rate. So, the reproductive endocrinologist must examine the tubal status before the surgery.

• Female Fertility

You may require in vitro fertilization to become pregnant if your reproductive specialist finds any pelvic conditions, such as endometriosis or pelvic adhesions.

• Male Fertility

The quality of sperm matters a lot when trying to get pregnant after tubal ligation. If the male sperm count or mortality rate is low, your likelihood of becoming pregnant will be slim.

In this case, you’ll look for IVF to increase your odds of pregnancy rather than waiting for a tubal reversal procedure.

Drawbacks of IVF After Tubal Ligation

Specific cons are linked with IVF following tubal ligation. First, the IVF cycle takes an average of two months.

Secondly, you’ll be required to take injectable hormones that stimulate egg development. In most cases, these fertility medications may cause side effects such as headaches, mood swings, and bloating.

Furthermore, IVF has a higher risk of multiple births. If you’re over 43 years old, the success rate of IVF after tubal ligation is meager. The treatment is recommended for women with low egg quality or reserves.

Sadly, most insurance firms in the country don’t cover the cost of IVF after tubal ligation. That’s because the procedure is regarded as non-essential surgery.

If you must have such treatment, you should be ready to shoulder all associated expenses. Moreover, if there are any complications during or after surgery, your insurance firm may not still pay the bills.