“When my husband tore his anterior cruciate ligament… his tests and surgeries were covered, despite the bill costing more than IVF. Why is the treatment for infertility treated differently when we are all paying the same premium?” Karin Ajmani, president of Progyny, asked during Progyny’s recent webinar on the landscape of LGBTQ family building. While there are more companies stepping up and supporting equitable fertility and family building benefits, LGBTQ individuals and couples still face restrictive policies and barriers to the services they need – even though they are paying the same premiums.
According to the Family Equality Council’s recent LGBTQ Family Building Survey, 63% of LGBTQ millennials (approximately 3.8 million people) are planning on starting a family in the coming years. The majority will look to foster care, adoption, and assisted reproductive technology (ART) to build their families. They’re rightfully demanding policies and benefits (for options like adoption, surrogacy, fertility treatment, etc) that are sensitive and inclusive of the many paths to parenthood.
Conventional fertility benefits typically restrict access to same-sex couples by requiring pre-certification or a diagnosis of infertility (often hidden in the fine print). Ultimately, these one-size-fits-all requirements limit access to necessary treatment and fail to acknowledge the many paths to parenthood. It’s time our employer-sponsored benefits catch up to our increasingly diverse workforce.
Progyny understands that no two experiences of becoming a parent are the same. Everyone has access to our comprehensive benefits solutions. We’ve coupled a flexible benefit design with LGBTQ-friendly providers and Patient Care Advocates that are trained to help individuals and couples find the right family-building option for their needs.
Today, we expect that our workplaces promote inclusivity and diversity in many ways, however, they still fall flat when it comes to the most important thing in our lives – family. Fertility benefits can change that. Where does your company stand? Learn more about LGBTQ family building and best practices for equitable benefits by watching the full webinar here.