Shared Risk 100% IVF Refund Program

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The Washington Post, NPR and Kaiser Health News explored if sharing the risk can help tame the cost of infertility treatment. “Infertility treatment is a numbers game in some respects: How many treatments will it take to conceive a child? And how much can you afford?”

While some insurance companies are providing more fertility treatment coverage, many patients don’t have sufficient benefits to cover the cost. This article looks at how patients are managing the cost of fertility treatment whether it be through self-pay financial programs, specifically looking at Shady Grove Fertility’s Shared Risk 100% Refund Guarantee for IVF or Donor Egg, or through new options like Glow First.

Shared Risk 100% Refund Guarantee for IVF or Donor Egg

First introduced by Shady Grove Fertility in 1993, Shared Risk offers patients undergoing IVF or donor egg treatment a simple guarantee: take home a baby or 100% of your money. When Shared Risk was first introduced many patients thought it was too good to be true but after nearly two decades of success – and over 8,000 new families – the program continues to grow and provide men and women with a financial safety net when considering fertility treatment. In fact, about 82 percent of Shared Risk participants will go on to take home a baby.

The Shared Risk 100% Refund Guarantee Includes:

  • Up to 6 cycles of IVF or donor egg Treatment for a flat fee
  • Embryo cryopreservation
  • Unlimited frozen embryo transfers resulting from the fresh IVF or donor egg cycles
  • Cycle Monitoring: This is defined as bloodwork and ultrasounds completed during the stimulated IVF cycle.  

Glow First

Another other the article reviewed was Glow, a new and innovative app that launched in August 2013. Offers patients two things: first, it is a free mobile application available for iOS users (iPhone, iPad, etc) offering women the ability to track and provide them with insights about their reproductive health. By having women track their ovulation, Glow will be able to inform women and their partners of their fertility window and their changes of conception.

Secondly, along with the app, users can apply to take part in Glow First, a not-for-profit fund for couples just starting their fertility journey. Participants contribute $50 per month over the course of ten months. This money goes into a pool what will be divided equally amongst any participants who did not achieve a natural pregnancy after ten months while using the Glow app. The first group that began contributing in October 2013 has just ended. Roughly 50 people participated, according to the company. The payout to those who didn’t become pregnant was $1,800.

Read the NPR Story

If you are ready to schedule an appointment at Shady Grove Fertility, please speak with one of our New Patient Liaisons at 877-971-7755.
 

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Financial Options: Insurance Coverage

Shady Grove Fertility participates with over 30 insurance providers, making fertility treatment more accessible to patients. 90% of insured patients have coverage for their initial consultation.

  • Adventist Healthnet
  • Aetna
  • Amerihealth HMO
  • Anthem
  • Berkshire Health Plan
  • Capital BC/BS
  • Carefirst BC/BS of Maryland
  • Carefirst Blue Choice
  • Carefirst National Capital Area
  • Choice Care Network
  • CHP/Informed
  • Cigna
  • Coventry Healthcare National Network (Formerly First Health)
  • GreatWest Healthcare
  • Health America
  • Highmark BC/BS
  • Highmark BC/BS Premier
  • Health Keepers
  • Independence BC/BS
  • Intergroup
  • Kaiser
  • Keystone Health Plan East
  • Keystone Health Plan Central
  • MAMSI Life & Health
  • MDIPA/Optimum Choice
  • MultiPlan Network
  • OneNet PPO (Formerly Alliance PPO)
  • Parent Steps
  • Private Healthcare Systems
  • Tricare
  • United Healthcare
  • United Resource Network

Financial Options: Unique Fertility Programs

Shady Grove Fertility currently provides several financial programs to help ease the cost of treatment when insurance isn’t an option. In 2013, over 3,000 patients participated in one these unique programs.

100% Guarantee Programs

  • Shared Risk 100% Refund for IVF offers qualified patients up to six fresh cycles of IVF treatment as well as any resulting frozen embryo transfers. If the patient does not take home a baby or stop the program at any time, 100 percent of the fee is refunded. It’s that simple.
  • Shared Risk 100% Refund for Donor Egg is similar to the IVF program, with the exception that the patient will be using donated eggs for treatment. If the patient does not take home a baby or stop the program at any time, 100 percent of the fee is refunded.

Financing Options

  • Fertility Finance, LLC specializes in providing loans for all fertility treatments. An easy application process and competitive rates provide assistance with the financial aspects of care.

Discount Programs

  • Shared Donor Egg allows patients to share a donor with one or two other recipients  and therefore shares the cost of those donated eggs. Shared Donor Egg can reduce the cost of donor egg treatment by up to 50 percent.
  • Shared Help Discount Program offers a discount on all testing and treatment provided at Shady Grove Fertility.
  • Multi-Cycle Discount Program offers close to a 40 percent discount on multiple IVF cycles.
  • Military Discount offers active duty and reservists a 25 percent discount.

Financial Options – Fertility Grants

There are several organizations that offer grants for men and women going through fertility treatment. The Family Building Grant available through the Cade Foundation offers patients up to $10,000 towards fertility treatment. In recent years Shady Grove Fertility has helped raise over $500,000 for Cade Foundation and the Family Building Grants. The next deadline is quickly approaching – get more info on the Family Building Grant.

Foundations & Fertility Grants

If you would like to learn more about the financial options for fertility treatment available at Shady Grove Fertility or would like to schedule an appointment at Shady Grove Fertility, please speak with one of our New Patient Liaisons at 877-971-7755.

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When you have to pay out of pocket for a child via fertility treatment – doesn’t it make sense to hope for multiple births (twins or triplets)? It will save your body and wallet some pain… right?

Hoping for Multiple Births

Recently in the Wall Street Journal, two women who had delivered twins and fertility specialists shared their experiences about multiple births. Women like Nikki David and Jackie Hazlett both had in vitro fertilization (IVF) to conceive.

At 33, Nikki knew that chances of conception decreased as she go older which was one of the reasons she was hoping for twins, “We can’t necessarily afford to do this again. I would be older the next time around… There were so may reasons why we’re like, ‘Please let it be twins, please let it be twins.'”

Jackie had been required to complete multiple rounds of fertility treatment as required by her insurance, prior to moving on to advanced treatment, like IVF. She wanted to have twins to boost the chance of conception simply to not have to put her body through more treatment. Jackie ended up conceiving twins after transferring two embryos. Her twins were born five weeks early and spent ten days in intensive care.

Educating Against Multiple Births

While twins may often feel like a blessing, the reality is that there can be lots of complications including premature birth – as Jackie experienced – as well as, cerebral palsy, blindness, retardation and congenital malformations.

For fertility specialists, like Shady Grove Fertility’s Eric A. Widra, M.D., it comes down to educating the patient on the best option for them. With the advancements in freezing embryos, “I can tell a 37-year-old if two of these embryos are going to be babies, they’ll be babies one at a time or two at a time.”

Elective single embryo transfer (eSET) is often recommended for women younger and have strong embryos. At SGF, women under 37 opted to transfer only one embryo in 34 percent of cycles. This number decreases dramatically after the age of 40, with only 1.3 percent of fresh IVF cycles in women 41-42 opting for single embryo transfer, due to lowered pregnancy rates.

Balancing Multiple Births and Pregnancy Rates – Financial Options

Patients should be educated on their options, as the choice is ultimately theirs on how many embryos to transfer.

Balancing the risk of multiple births with chances of pregnancy for any given cycle is not an easy option. Which is why programs like SGF’s Shared Risk 100% Refund Gaurantee for IVF and Donor Egg can help. For one upfront fee, patients receive up to six fresh cycles of IVF or donor egg treatment, as well as any resulting frozen embryo transfers. Not having the financial pressure helps many women make the best choice for their body and family, not just what they can afford.

Like Jackie, many women have to follow guidelines based on their insurance providers. Helping get improved regulation and insurance mandates for fertility care is a large initiative for organizations like RESOLVE. There are continued efforts to reach out to lawmakers, educate them on fertility care, and pass legislation that improves coverage. You can reach out to your Senator or Representatives by making a call or sending a letter. Click here to learn more about the Family Act.

If you have questions about fertility or are ready to schedule an appointment at Shady Grove Fertility, please speak with one of our New Patient Liaisons at 877-971-7755.

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WMAR-ABC2 A Child at Any Cost: One Maryland couple’s journey from infertility to parenthood.

Last week, during National Infertility Awareness Week, Baltimore’s WMAR – ABC2 put a spotlight on infertility and all of the challenges associated with it: emotional, financial, and the different ways families are built. Trang Do shares the journey of Shady Grove Fertility patients, Tina and Jimmy Stone, and their long road to parenthood. In the interview, the Stones share their story and experience using donor egg for other couples who are dealing with the same struggles, to let them know that they are not alone. Watch the interview. 

“Never give up if you want a family, you’ll find a way.”  

The Stones began trying to conceive about one year after marriage, and like many couples, their journey was not as easy as anticipated. Filled with loss and heartache, their story has three very happy endings.

After a miscarriage and year of trying to conceive naturally, the Stones came to Shady Grove Fertility where their physician, Gilbert L. Mottla, M.D., diagnosed Tina with endometriosis. With this new diagnosis and previous surgeries and complications leaving Tina with one ovary, the Stones went straight to IVF. Determined to have children, the Stones overcame various financial and emotional hurdles utilizing the Maryland Mandate to cover 3 rounds of IVF. Unfortunately, each of were failed cycles so the couple turned to adoption. After adopting their daughter, Ella, they returned to Shady Grove Fertility to use the Shared Donor Egg Program and Shared Risk 100% Refund Program, fulfilling their dream of having children.

Watch the Stone Interview

Shared Donor Egg and Shared Risk

The Shared Donor Egg Program offers up to 6 cycles for a 100% money-back guarantee for the same cost as a traditional donor egg cycle. The pregnancy rates for patients who have selected this program are equal to the pregnancy rates of traditional egg donation. Shared Donor means that two or three recipient couples will be matched with one egg donor. The Shared Donor Egg Program, paired with Shared Risk essentially cuts the cost of donor egg treatment in half. Together, these programs gave the Stones confidence to try again knowing if it failed, they would get all of their money back to adopt again. Their message: One way or another it’s going to work out. Never give up if you want a family, you’ll find a way.

Learn more about financial options at Shady Grove Fertility:

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If you have questions about fertility or are ready to schedule an appointment at Shady Grove Fertility, please speak with one of our New Patient Liaisons at 877-971-7755.

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This month, Suburban Life magazine in Philadelphia, released their “Best Physicians” edition featuring an article highlighting the newest Philadelphia fertility center – Shady Grove Fertility.

Expanded Fertility Services in Philadelphia

In the year that Shady Grove Fertility has been in the Philadelphia area, it has expanded the fertility services and financial options available to the region.

The Shared Risk 100% Refund Guarantee for IVF and Donor Egg Treatment offers qualified patients 6 rounds of fresh (or stimulated) treatment as well as all the subsequent frozen embryo transfers for one flat fee. Patients will deliver a baby or receive a 100% refund – it’s that simple. More on Shared Risk >

While donor egg treatment is becoming more widely available, Shady Grove Fertility offers patients the Shared Donor Egg Program, which makes donor egg treatment more affordable. By splitting the eggs of one donor between 2 or 3 recipients, the costs of treatment can be cut in half. More on Shared Donor Egg >

Also available at the Chesterbrook IVF Center (the regional IVF and Donor Egg Center for the Philadelphia area) is the EmbryoScope. Only a dozen centers across the United States currently have access to this technology which allows the medical team to monitor embryos via video, helping them to select the strongest one for transfer. More on the EmbryoScope >

Philadelphia Fertility Center

Last summer, Shady Grove Fertility opened the doors to new offices in Pennsylvania, including Chesterbrook (Philadelphia suburb) and Reading. This year, SGF has opened another office in Bala Cynwyd, PA and expanded services in Harrisburg, PA.

Isaac E. Sasson, MD, PhD, a Yale Medical School graduate who performed his clinical fellowship for reproductive endocrinology and infertility at University of Pennsylvania, is available to see new patients at the Bala Cynwyd and Chesterbook locations.

Abraham K. Munabi, MD, a long time member of the Philadelphia fertility community, built a thriving practice prior to joining Shady Grove Fertility. Dr. Munabi is available for new patient consultations in Chesterbrook, Reading, and Harrisburg.

Also available for consultations in Harrisburg are Dr. Melissa Esposito and Dr. Jason Bromer, who also each see patients in Frederick, MD.

If you would like to schedule an appointment to discuss your fertility treatment options, please speak with one of our New Patient Liaisons at
877-985-2266.

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NBC4 in Washington, DC reports that Shady Grove Fertility’s Shared Risk 100% Refund for IVF and Donor Egg treatment gives patients the peace of mind in knowing they will either have a baby or receive a full refund.

Jeremy and Kia were trying to have a baby for 4 years before finding success at Shady Grove Fertility. After failed treatment at another center, the idea of a guarantee program offering a full refund for IVF treatment, encouraged them to continue with fertility treatment. “To know we had that guarantee, that commitment or we could get all of our money back – that was a big selling point for us,” says Jeremy.

Jeremy and Kia consulted fertility specialist, Dr. Jeanne O’Brien, who confirmed that they each had infertility that were impacting their ability to conceive on their own.

Watch Jeremy & Kia Share Their Story

Watch the story at nbcwashington.com.

If you are having trouble conceiving and would like to speak with one of our New Patient Liaisons by calling 877-971-7755 or schedule an appointment.

2026 Shady Grove Fertility

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