Members of the Assembly in Northern Ireland have passed a motion calling on the Health Minister to fund three cycles of IVF treatment. At present, anyone eligible for funded fertility treatment in Northern Ireland will only get one attempt at IVF paid for by the health service. In England NHS funding can vary, but in Scotland couples get three cycles and in Wales they get two. The guidelines published by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence recommend that those who are eligible should be offered up to three full cycles of treatment.
It is great news that the Assembly is considering the issue, and that members are minded to call for more funding for fertility. The campaigning work carried out by Infertility Network UK in Ireland is sure to have helped bring this issue to the forefront.
Showing posts with label NICE. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NICE. Show all posts
Tuesday, 20 March 2012
Monday, 14 April 2008
Nurses to debate fertility funding
Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) will discuss funding for infertility treatment in a debate at their annual conference in Bournemouth at the end of the month.
The RCN's Congress will consider a motion calling on the union to lobby for proper funding for fertility treatment, recognising the inadequacies of the current system. Most people still pay for their IVF in the UK, despite the recommendation by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) that women under 40 who needed IVF should get three cycles of NHS treatment. That guideline was issued in 2004 and at the time the government responded by saying that, as a first step, all those under 40 who needed IVF should get one NHS cycle by 2005.
In fact, this still hasn't happened. Instead, there are a wide variety of different criteria applied in many areas to make sure fewer women will qualify for their single cycle of treatment. In other parts of the country, there is simply no funded treatment available at all. Whatever you think about funding for fertility treatment, the current system is unfair and causes heartache for thousands of couples who find they can't get the help they need.
You can read more about the RCN motion on the issue at the union's website www.rcn.org.uk
The RCN's Congress will consider a motion calling on the union to lobby for proper funding for fertility treatment, recognising the inadequacies of the current system. Most people still pay for their IVF in the UK, despite the recommendation by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) that women under 40 who needed IVF should get three cycles of NHS treatment. That guideline was issued in 2004 and at the time the government responded by saying that, as a first step, all those under 40 who needed IVF should get one NHS cycle by 2005.
In fact, this still hasn't happened. Instead, there are a wide variety of different criteria applied in many areas to make sure fewer women will qualify for their single cycle of treatment. In other parts of the country, there is simply no funded treatment available at all. Whatever you think about funding for fertility treatment, the current system is unfair and causes heartache for thousands of couples who find they can't get the help they need.
You can read more about the RCN motion on the issue at the union's website www.rcn.org.uk
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