Female same-sex couples will no longer have to face financial obstacles to access IVF treatment; barriers removed by NHS through a landmark ruling

• Aparna Sreevalsan
• 21 July, 2022

• The NHS has revised its policies to allow many lesbian women to receive IVF.
• A new step was made toward gender equality.

FEMALE same-sex couples who wish to access IVF treatment will no longer have to face hefty financial obstacles.

The NHS made the landmark ruling on Wednesday (20) while unveiling its new Women’s Health Strategy* aimed at ending inequality in healthcare.

They will no longer be required to pay for artificial insemination to prove their fertility, and NHS treatment, for these couples would initially consist of six cycles of artificial insemination (IUI) before they can, if necessary, access IVF treatments.

Up until recently, female same-sex couples in England had to undergo a number of pricey rounds of intrauterine insemination, which might cost as much as £20,950.

Only then were they eligible for NHS-funded IVF. Before receiving sponsored IVF, opposite-sex couples must merely try to conceive for two years.

Stonewall’s CEO Nancy Kelley said: “We are delighted that the UK government has listened to our call for fair and equal access to IVF treatment.

“For years, lesbians, bi women and trans people have been forced to pay for up to £25,000 of private healthcare before they can access IVF on the NHS, or face giving up their dream of becoming parents.

“This is a giant step towards a world where LGBTQ+ people have the same opportunity as everyone else to build a loving, thriving family of their own.”

In addition, the government has promised to improve “transparency on provision and availability of IVF, so prospective parents can see how their local area performs” in order to “stop the postcode lottery” for fertility treatment that is faced by both heterosexual and LGBTQ+ persons.

The proposal also includes enhancements to specialist endometriosis services as well as investments of £10 million in breast screening programmes and a pregnancy loss certificate in England to recognise parents who have lost a child before 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Steve Barclay, secretary of health and social care, said: “Our health and care system only works if it works for everyone.

“It is not right that 51 per cent of our population are disadvantaged in accessing the care they need, simply because of their sex.

“The publication of this strategy is a landmark moment in addressing entrenched inequalities and improving the health and wellbeing of women across the country.”

However, other LBGT+ couples still face difficulties, as trans and non-binary people who need fertility preservation treatment still have to compete in a “postcode lottery” for funding.

*The Women’s Health Strategy- First Women’s Health Strategy for England to tackle gender health gap