Journal of Science Policy & Governance
Volume 23, Issue 01 | October 23, 2023

Policy Memo: Fertility Care Is Healthcare: A Mandate to Cover Fertility Healthcare in California Promotes Reproductive Equity

Natalie D. Gehred(1), Alex Stevens(2), Natalie Moncada(3)
  1. University of California – Los Angeles, Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA 
  2. University of California – Los Angeles, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular & Structural Biology, Los Angeles, California, USA 
  3. University of California – Los Angeles, Department of Neurobiology, Los Angeles, California, USA

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​Corresponding author: [email protected] ​​
Keywords: fertility care; infertility; SB 729; families; healthcare; insurance; in vitro fertilization ​
https://doi.org/10.38126/JSPG210103

Executive Summary

Infertility is a prevalent disease that causes mental and financial distress for those who suffer from it. For Californians affected by infertility, treatment access is limited by high out-of-pocket costs, as the State does not currently require health insurance plans to cover the cost of fertility services. However, California is currently considering a bill (SB 729) to mandate coverage of fertility care in the large-group insurance market. We recommend the State Assembly pass SB 729 as written to increase the availability of fertility treatments in a politically and economically feasible way. Additionally, we recommend the State amend informed consent procedures to better relay the fertility care options available to patients. Individually and jointly, these measures will alleviate the financial burden of fertility healthcare on California families.

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Background header image courtesy of SCI IVF Hospital
Natalie D. Gehred is a Ph.D. Candidate in Molecular Biology at UCLA, where she studies the role of chromatin structural proteins in cardiac fibroblast activation. Natalie is an active member of UCLA’s Science Policy Group and hopes to work in health or biomedical research policy when she graduates. Natalie received her B.A. in both Genomics and Computational Biology and Classics from Washington University in St. Louis in 2019. 

Alex Stevens is a Ph.D. candidate in the Biochemistry, Molecular and Structural Biology Department at UCLA. He works in a structural biology lab where he investigates the structures which underpin the pathogenicity of various microbes including Herpesviruses and Trichomonas vaginalis. Alex is new to the science policy field but is interested in politics and hopes to use his inquisitive character to determine how policy impacts stakeholders and how policy can be changed to improve society. He received a B.S. in Biochemistry and an Anthropology Minor from Arizona State University in 2019. 

Natalie Moncada is a Ph.D. candidate in the Molecular, Cellular and Integrative Physiology Program at UCLA. She works in a neurobiology lab where she studies the role of sleep after brain injuries. She received her B.S. in Biological Sciences at the University of California – Irvine. Natalie has also represented UCLA students as part of the Student Researchers United, where she worked with other graduate students throughout the University of California system to negotiate a contract for student researchers. ​

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