Egg Freezing To IVF: Financial Planning For Fertility Treatment Is No Child’s Play

Arushi* went through two rounds of intrauterine insemination or IUI before she and her husband realised they would have to go a step ahead — an IVF treatment. At this point, she had already spent around Rs 50,000 in hopes of a successful pregnancy and yet her long physical and financial journey was just beginning.

Six women that NDTV Profit spoke to revealed that they have spent between Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh on their pregnancies, which involved IVF treatments. For some, the treatment is still underway. They requested anonymity for the sake of their privacy. Of this, up to Rs 1-2 lakh was spent on the IVF treatment itself. For some, even more.

So, how does one go about planning the expenses? Why is it important and does insurance come into play? Here are key things you need to know about pregnancy financing.

An IUI treatment involves injecting specially prepared sperm into the uterus to boost the chances of conception. Often, it is the first-line treatment recommended to couples struggling with infertility. When that does not work out, In Vitro Fertilisation or IVF is considered the more effective treatment. It is also more heavy on the pocket to say the least.

“In my 15 years of experience, I have been seeing a huge change and increase in the number of people being reported with PCOS,” said Dr. Yuvraj Singh Jadeja, gynaecologist and infertility specialist at Nimaaya Center for Women’s Health, Vadodara, Gujarat.

PCOS or Polycystic Ovary Syndrome is a hormonal disorder, common among women of reproductive age. It affects the woman’s ovaries, resulting in the formation of cysts. It is characterised by symptoms like irregular periods, weight gain, extra hair, and acne, among others. Essentially caused due to a bad lifestyle, it can lead to serious health issues among women—one of them being infertility. 

The World Health Organization calls PCOS a “significant public health problem”. Globally, the condition affects an estimated 6–13% of women. In India, it is higher. In 2023, data from the Ministry of Science & Technology showed that it affected 3.7-22.5% of women in the country. On the ground, however, the figures seem higher still.

In the last five years, the number of patients with PCOS that Dr. Bhavini Shah has seen walking into her clinic has gone up 20-30%.

“Yes, definitely the number has gone up. On average, a lot of young women are coming up with PCOS and that is primarily because of the lifestyle that we are living these days,” said Dr. Shah, obstetrician-gynaecologist at Momma’s Clinic, Mumbai. 

Dr. Jadeja echoed this as well. “We are sleeping less, we are under stress, there's so much processed food, sugar going into our body…on top of it, you're partying, you're drinking, recreational drugs also, which is increasing. So all of it is just hitting your reproductive system and that is the reason infertility is on the rise.”

“Especially in our consultation rooms…I think every third or fourth woman you see is suffering from PCOS,” he added. 

Women are not the only ones suffering from infertility issues. Male sperm health around the globe is also “drastically declining year by year”, according to Dr. Jadeja.

More and more women are choosing motherhood at a later stage than they used to. Dr. Shah says that about 85-90% of the women walking in for IVF treatments in her clinic are in the 30 or above age category. 

“The average age of people going for IVF has also increased because more and more women post their 35 are now wanting to get pregnant…women are concentrating on their careers. They want to wait, be ready, and be prepared financially, emotionally, and even, relationship-wise. They want to be more stable before just jumping into their pregnancies,” Dr. Jadeja said.

Dr. Kshitiz Murdia, chief executive officer and co-founder of Indira IVF, also concurred. There has been a significant shift, with more women choosing to conceive in their 30s and beyond. The National Statistical Office highlighted this trend in 2020, revealing that half of women who turned 30 that year had not yet had children, a pattern not observed since 1920, he said.

“The demand for IVF has grown significantly in India, with more couples turning to assisted reproduction due to multiple converging factors, including delayed family planning, increasing infertility rates, and heightened awareness of available fertility treatments. Current statistics show that India performs approximately 2-2.5 lakh IVF cycles annually, with projections indicating this number will more than double to 5-6 lakh cycles per year by 2030,” he said.

But IVFs are heavy on the pocket. 

Arushi, a 34-year-old marketing professional in Hyderabad, was not “mentally prepared for the expenses” when she started her IVF. This is because, before the procedure itself, she and her husband had to undergo a battery of tests and consume medicines and injections, which also bit into their pockets.

She spent Rs 30,000 on top of the previous Rs 50,000 for the failed IUI attempts, on tests that precede IVF treatments. 

Twenty-five-year-old homemaker, Rekha*, said she spent between Rs 2-3 lakh on her IVF treatment. In total, she spent around Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5 lakh for her successful pregnancy. This included expenditure on injections, medicines and doctor consultations, she said. 

“We didn’t know my husband’s sperm count would be less and we would have to go for an IVF. We had to slowly build the funds for the treatment.”

Supriya*, a 34-year-old homemaker, said she had to spend Rs 8 lakh on just her IVF. She expects to spend up to Rs 15 lakh on her entire pregnancy. 

Isha* had to break her fixed deposit for her treatment, which is currently underway. “I was saving it for something else. It was a difficult decision, but we decided to go for it,” the 32-year-old homemaker said. She expects to spend Rs 2 lakh for her overall pregnancy.

The moot point is that on average, fertility treatments can cost anywhere between Rs 9,000 to Rs 2.5 lakh.  However, this is just a basic estimate. The costs can vary depending on the clinic, city, additional procedures, and medications. An IUI can cost between Rs 10,000 and Rs 15,000; an IVF between Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh, while egg freezing — wherein a woman’s eggs are extracted and stored for future pregnancies — can cost between Rs 50,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh. 

Then, there are hidden costs, like paying for the storage of specimens and consultation fees. 

For example, while the basic procedure for egg freezing can cost as mentioned above, there is an additional annual fee to be paid for storage of the egg. This can range from Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000, depending on the clinic and the number of eggs.

But in Arushi’s case, it was Rs 25,000 a year. Six of her embryos were fertilised during her IVF treatment. While she awaits the final step — which is the transfer of the embryo into her body — she has to consider the storage of the other embryos which will not be transferred. 

“If I transfer two embryos next month, I conceive and I have four of them remaining. I can transfer at the age of 40 also…but that will mean you will have to pay Rs 25,000 (per year).”

In case this transfer is unsuccessful, she will have to pay more for a second attempt. Every transfer will cost her Rs 75,000 on top of the roughly Rs 2 lakh she has already spent on the first round. And an additional Rs 25,000 will go from her wallet for the storage of her remaining embryos. That's a financial hit of at least Rs 2.25 lakh to Rs 3 lakh. 

“We need more financial, better insurance, medical plans for women…especially fertility and newborn care because that is a huge financial burden for these patients,” said Dr. Jadeja. “Infertility pregnancies usually require more medicines, more care, more regular follow-ups, and are also prone to more pregnancy complications. So, again, that's an extra financial burden.”

Meera*, a 35-year-old chef, was the only woman NDTV Profit spoke to who had planned and saved funds for potential infertility treatments. “I had savings. Since I had PCOD and my husband is also a smoker, we were very sure that we might have to take IVF, and we are trying late as well.” 

“I was prepared because my mom is a doctor. She told me to save around Rs 3-5 lakh for IVF treatment in case natural conception fails,” she said.

It’s important for a couple to start family planning the moment they get married, according to Mohit Gang, co-founder and chief executive officer of Moneyfront. “I think step number one is to decide whether you want to go for a child and when you want to go for a child, assuming that scenario should be five years post your marriage.” 

He recommended investing in mutual funds, good-quality equity or balanced funds for five years. If one wants to plan for a corpus of Rs 5 lakh, then an investment of Rs 8,000 to 8,500 in a systematic investment plan should help reach this goal. That is assuming a 12% return, he advised.

“If the timeline is three years out, then you might just want to go with a balanced or a multi-asset fund. If the timeline is five years and above, then you might want to go with a large cap or a flexi cap fund.”

There are also special loans and insurance schemes offered by financial institutions, which have tie-ups with IVF clinics. Indira IVF is one such clinic, with a partnership with SafeTree Insurance. “Our primary aim is to increase the affordability of IVF treatments for all couples facing challenges in conceiving naturally. Only 1% of the couples facing infertility challenges are availing the treatment, primarily due to affordability challenges and lack of awareness,” said Vikas Anand, chief executive officer of SafeTree Insurance.

Their insurance covers two IUI and two IVF cycles for the couple, after a waiting period of 24 months.

But loans and insurance schemes don’t always cover the hidden costs. “I think you should have at least Rs 1 lakh saved up. Some agencies give you a loan...But you don't get loans for freezing samples and embryos,” said Arushi. For a lot of these processes, a couple may have to also take medicines and injections which are expensive and not necessarily covered in the scheme, she added. 

Several general health insurance plans also provide add-ons on base coverage. Moneyfront’s Gang recommends looking out for them.

“If you are a working lady then you should look out for corporate policies.” 

Check for any government schemes that provide financial assistance for fertility treatments, he added. 

Between initial tests, medicines, injections and multiple procedures, the process of just getting pregnant seems to rake up a sizable bill. And then, there is the matter of delivering the child. With rising cases of reproduction-related health issues, a look at the bank account when planning a family may just stand to benefit.

*Names changed on request.