$100K and epic drives: The harsh reality of IVF access in Canada

[@CBCTheNational]

We’ve opened comments on this post to hear your ideas and experiences related to this story. Comments remain closed on other posts to try to reduce harm to the subjects of our content, our staff and the audience.

[@Crazy911Calls]

In a democracy comments are always open.

[@sujiryu7909]

This is such an important issue to discuss! As a person who has gone through multiple IVF cycles, it is not only the issue of accessibility but also getting the time off from work for the appointments, sometimes several times a week, was challenging. Also, the cost is a huge burden for a lot of people. Many decide to travel abroad to access affordable treatments which I ended up with. I wish IVF could be funded across Canada and more people can experience the joy of growing their own families.

[@jankay8569]

I love asian females. Are u tight?

[@1966johnnywayne]

It's so sad that Nature didn't come up with a way to make having children simpler for women. It's so difficult for women who want to be Mothers ...having to go to university and spend at least another ten good years slaving for corporations, all during their prime fertility years, just to save up to be able afford IVF at the end of their fertile years. That's so messed up.

[@Teencat]

Thank you for this piece, CBC News. We need to normalize dialogue around fertility and miscarriages and realize that sexual and reproductive health is just that: health.

[@ryanparkhurst5718]

@Teencat, what is an IVF, and what does it stand for?

[@XetaXones]

@@ryanparkhurst5718in-vitro fertilization. the first part is Latin meaning “in glass”, a lot of names in medicine and science are given latin names

[@Crackrzz]

​@@ryanparkhurst5718 it is explained in the video

[@johnpetzelt5200]

Male here ... in BC ... we are finally doing something here! Not enough but something. Thank you CBC and keep it up! My heart goes out to the hopeful parents ...

[@jamiewelsh8850]

Thank you for showcasing this incredibly important issue CBC! My husband and I have had 3 egg retrievals to date and are similarly down to our last frozen embryo, to be transferred in early March. We were blessed with a son via IVF+ICSI in 2021, however it is our hope to provide our son with a sibling. We have had 2 miscarriages this year. Our fingers are crossed, but our expectations are realistic. We have been humbled by this daunting process and recognize it is so much harder for so many others who have to travel long distances in order to receive care, and who have not yet been blessed with a child. We were incredibly lucky have employer benefits cover two rounds of IVF+ICSI for us, as it's incredibly rare in Alberta to have employer coverage for fertility. The next retrieval, if I decide to put my body through more hormones and medication will be out of pocket for the second time, and would put a huge financial strain on our family. Please Canada, please Alberta, do better.

[@Melissa-bw2kg]

Wishing you all the best with your next transfer 🙏🏾

[@Wysers]

We traveled from the interior of BC to Vancouver for IVF treatments, about a 5 hour trip each way. Our daughter was born happy and healthy in 2021 via IVF and surrogacy. Currently our second child is almost due via IVF and surrogacy as well. Luckily our egg donor and our second surrogate had 3rd party medication coverage. But the bills add up very quick. Modern medicine is a miracle.

[@dougow]

The benefits of being rich

[@dougreed736]

You up set the majority of Canadians.

[@XetaXones]

@@dougreed736I am willing to bet youre not Alexandre Trudeau… 👀

[@Room142]

How is the news so touching? I'm ugly crying for her, i wish her a healthy pregnancy!

[@XetaXones]

I hope that IVF will be included with our healthcare

[@virtualworlddisorderrealit1848]

biologically you're supposed to have kids in your EARLY TWENTIES. Waiting til one's thirties is a CHOICE. If you want kids DON'T WAIT TIL YOU'RE CLOSE TO WHAT USED TO BE THE AVERAGE AGE OF DEATH. Your body, whether you like it or not, is not going to change for your personal wealth management. Delaying, while relying on science is a PERSONAL gamble other's should not have to fund. You're audience should be better educated.

[@XetaXones]

@@virtualworlddisorderrealit1848none of what you said is based on fact, sounds more like your personal FEEL-osophy 😪

[@virtualworlddisorderrealit1848]

it's a shame you missed so many biology & history classes@@XetaXones my comments are based on science, not BS, like yours.

[@tigerbear3038]

@@virtualworlddisorderrealit1848 everything you said is true

[@tigerbear3038]

Our healthcare absolutely should not include IVF. Our system is overburdened as it is and you want to add another treatment that should be funded ?

[@PamShambo-wo6im]

Hello, my husband and I needed to seek ivf treatments in order to build our family. 3 rounds of ivf and a frozen egg transfer and we finally have a beautiful baby girl. What I’d like to comment on is the cost side of the process and what provinces are giving back monetary wise. I am in Manitoba and we have only one clinic option. This clinic wasn’t able to help our particular situation (my husband required a surgery as well) and so we sought a clinic more equipped to help us which ended up being a clinic in BC. Because of this, we were not able to receive the MB provincial amount back at tax time. Which caused us to miss out on a substantial amount of money. The waitlist in Winnipeg is long and couldn’t accommodate our needs but Manitoba doesn’t allow you to seek help outside of the province which I think is ridiculous. People get second opinions on all kinds of things, why isn’t ivf permitted? Why is it that we can only use that one clinic? Our travel time/costs also weren’t covered due to seeking treatment outside of province. Why? Because according to the gov we could do this procedure in MB so it didn’t qualify for reimbursement. I believe ivf and all things required for it should be covered. No matter where you choose to have it done, at least within Canada. It cost us well over $90,000 to create our daughter.. this is incredibly insane.. it hurts my heart that we’ve had to spend so much just to fulfill our desire for a family. The government should not only cover this fully but backdate pay to a certain point to help families all over Canada.

[@kaylagillis4865]

I hope it worked out for her! 💕I’m in a similar situation travelling 10hrs to Toronto. Thinking of her ❤❤

[@tiffanievillemaire761]

My heart breaks for her. I’m just starting my infertility treatments. It’s definitely emotionally and financially draining. Baby dust to all the mamas or parents!!

[@jessieLAAAA]

Amazing storytelling! Such a great piece.

[@Mr.Freeze-CA]

Wow! I wish all the best for those women who fight to be pregnant. May our lord, Jesus Christ bless all of them, with healthy pregnancy. 🎉🎉

[@MelissaVanDusen-o5c]

Some can go into pre-menopause just at age 25. Trust me, if only it was that easy.

[@virtualworlddisorderrealit1848]

Some... okay how many exactly. sounds like a rare situation@@MelissaVanDusen-o5c And tell the husbands to knock off the pot smoking if they realistically want to fertilize an egg.

[@cuiyutan2330]

I am an ortarian live 2.5 hours away from Winnipeg MB. I had driven many trips to get done 5 rounds of IUI.I am really tires now. I am hoping those days will be over soon.

[@john_doe_not_found]

We could build a society that puts family ahead of career. Why not do college at 30 and start a family at 20? Cause that sounds crazy right? What also sounds crazy is people doing university, paying off university, saving for a house while paying high rent, then buying a house, then some time around 35 - 40, they try to have 1 baby. And that is how population collapse begins.

[@shea1219]

Women are not likely to go to college when they have 2-3 little one's at home they need to care for. It's really difficult. School is hard without children.

[@alexb8079]

​@@shea1219This! Not only that but many need the stable incomes to even be able to afford a home and children.

[@dougreed736]

My wife was 28 when we learned she has difficulty with this. It took us till age 35 to afford ivf.

[@dsipos2]

@@dougreed736well when your fighting genetics it’s gonna be a lot lol

[@user-ld6wo4rv8h]

College should be for men only. The concept of a woman in college is laughable at best.

[@bb7503]

I started at 37 with iui had a daughter then went for ivf in Ontario at 41 i was lucky i had lots of eggs but yes its very stressful and costly ,the good thing is you can claim.your fertility treatment costs back when filing your taxes ,a child is worth the journey

[@ArielleXArielle]

I wish she would have had somewhere to stay in Toronto, so that she wouldn't have to travel 8 hours each time. Wow, this is so very sad for women.

[@1966johnnywayne]

What's sad is that women have been convinced to work a corporate slave job instead of having children the natural way, during their fertile twenties.

[@virtualworlddisorderrealit1848]

is it still a lottery prize in Ontario, like getting a doctor's appointment at Shouldice and walk in clinics?

[@1966johnnywayne]

It's so sad that Nature didn't come up with a way to make having children simpler for women. It's so difficult for women who want to be Mothers ...they have to go to university and spend at least another ten good years slaving for corporations, all during their prime fertility years, just to save up to be able afford IVF at the end of their fertile years. That's so messed up.

[@rainbowfrequency1]

I do empathyze with these women trying to conveive, I cant imagine. I do want to say the justification that we "need a population for a jurisdiction to thrive" is an off putting argument. It feels like discussing a product not a human.

[@julesk1567]

yup, very natalist argument that should not gain momentum. you can use the same argument to justify a ban on abortions…

[@Stevejoesofficial]

Free for citizens in Israel and Denmark but our country it’s 25k per try and then they tell us we aren’t having enough children and need to ramp up immigration .

[@virtualworlddisorderrealit1848]

that's a bit sick

[@user-ld6wo4rv8h]

You can blame feminism for brainwashing young women to pursue ridiculous careers they aren't even qualified for instead of becoming mothers and wives. Most young women cannot even cook these days.

[@jeanbolduc5818]

Québec has always been 10 years in advance from the rest of Canada . There are more than 350,000 EV cars on the road and no issue ... You cannot even buy a beer at the super market in 2024 in Ontario ...

[@1966johnnywayne]

And some day when the rest of Canada is not criminally forced to subsidize Quebec with transfers, perhaps we can have nice things too.

[@Nothing-fp7jg]

Why aren't they looking into the causes of infertility? Male fertility globally has been in decline. Does hormonal birth control have a roll to play in all of this? Man, the stuff from the 1960s was so strong, it probably turned a woman's ovaries to goo. Also, plastics - does the residue from that cause fertility issues?

[@1966johnnywayne]

"Why aren't they looking into the causes of infertility?" ...Well, considering that the vast majority of women who access IVF are in their late 30's to 40's, I'm pretty sure they know the causes.

[@francesbernard2445]

Having to go through more than one well documented miscarriage first before having the right to get any kind of fertility treatment at all while your marriage partner wants children too is hard enough.

[@FY-vs2fz]

My wife and I went through IVF and we understand how some of these women feel. However, we do not believe that IVF is the only way to parenthood and that's a gap that this piece is not covering. When we went through this difficult process, we told each other that if it didn't work on our first try, we could just try adopting. I can't, in good conscience, support the idea of more coverage or tax deductions for couples that want to try many many times. I think that the Federal or Provincial governments, should support the first round of IVF but beyond that, couples should pay the full cost out of pocket. We should be supporting and helping couples become parents, not the obsession of having kids that have your genes. Adoption is an option. On a separate note, the fact that most fertility clinics are in urban centres is supposed be that way. IVF treatment is highly specific and you can't expect to have clinics all over in a country where nearly 1 in 5 Canadians can't access a family doctor.

[@alexb8079]

It is not the infertility community's job to adopt all the children looking for homes. I think people should have the right to try as many times as they want to start their family. Including if they want to try multiple rounds! Not all women are built the same and for women with low reserves it can take many cycles to get even 1 normal embryo. What about people who have cancer and need to do two rounds to bank enough embryos to potentially have one child one day. As someone who's done IVF, the first round is normally a test to see how your body responds to the meds. You should know that if you went through IVF. While many respond to the stims, there are also many women who don't and need to change protocols cycle after cycle to get any embryos. The sad reality is that most of these Northern communities don't have access to most important "highly specific" medical care. I don't think it "should be that way". Every Canadian should have access to IVF atleast within a closer distance than 9 hours round trip per day. This journey is hard enough, I can't imagine having to take time off work and drive 9 hours a day daily for monitoring appointments, procedures etc. I think you missed the whole point of this video.

[@FY-vs2fz]

​@@alexb8079Sadly, I think you took the video at face value (ignoring underlying problems) and completely missed my reply. I never said it's the infertility's community responsibility to adopt. I never said it's anyone's responsibility to adopt (not for infertile families or fertile ones). I said it's an option to "achieve the dreams of parenthood" (quoted from the video). I agree that it's within everybody's right to try as many times as they want. I am against the idea that the taxes that we all pay should cover more than 1 try. If you want to keep trying unlimited times, do it with your own money. You also fail to grasp that many of these Northern communities lack basic medical care too. How could infertility treatments ever be more important than keeping emergency rooms open? This is also a problem that many communities are facing due to the lack of staff. You seem to think that resources (both money and staff) are infinite. Given that we don't have infinite amounts of money or doctors / nurses, we should prioritize. Unfortunately, IVF is not at the top of the list.

[@icantwiththis]

Adoption is an option!

[@merlinandisabelcatmom]

Couples dealing with infertility have the right to have their own biological children if they choose. Just like you do. It it not on them to adopt the world's children (which come with many more complications and need parents who are prepared for that)

[@kateharlech2451]

Why would she drive? Wouldn’t it be more reasonable for her to fly and cut the time in half

[@1966johnnywayne]

Wouldn't it be more reasonable yet to have children during a woman's fertile twenties? I know...radical idea, but I'm pretty sure nature has a plan for this.

[@goldminer83]

Every time CBC has a video with no comments i hit pause then the thumbs down and leave! We pay your salary and have a right to either agree or call out your hypocrisy!! #DefundTheCBC

[@mpolley]

Complains about no comments while making a comment, irony at its best. Appreciate the story and its message.

[@1966johnnywayne]

@@mpolley No, he's stating his objection to a publicly funded "news" outlet refusing to allow comments from the very people who fund this travesty on most of their stories. The fact that we are permitted to comment on this story is an exception on CBC's site.

[@cherylsibson2529]

Given all the advancement of IVF and my heart goes to women experiencing IVF problems, just hard because a world a way in Gaza, and in Ukraine, they are fighting for their lives, and can't even get medical care for limbs for children, let alone worry about preemie care for early born new born health care for them. We live in a world of compassion far and wide, what are we obligated to do? We've sent 3 billion for food aid programs that is not being delivered in Gaza.

[@Phierecephairy]

Aa someobe who is adopted.......why dont you sornd that money to adopt instead kids need parents and love

[@seleneledezma3543]

Because pregnancy is part of the experience of becoming a parent. Pregnancy is a beautiful thing, difficult but still an incredible experience. And, you don't get that with adoption. Also, getting a new born when adopting is almost impossible, most couples want the experience of raising a baby. All points of view are valid

[@jankay8569]

Good. If you want kids you gotta pay up. Where is the problem again...? Btw why any sane person would want to be a breeder is beyond me

[@1966johnnywayne]

Your thousands of ancestors must be proud of your selfish choice.

[@dsipos2]

You can’t have kids you think doing it 3 times and it doesn’t work and what the 4th wil work . That’s denial

[@jamiewelsh8850]

Perhaps brush up on your biology.

[@dsipos2]

@@jamiewelsh8850 well we will see sooner then later

[@julesk1567]

this feels like a report from an alternative universe. one in which there is not an ever expanding part of the population struggling to pay for the bare necessities like a roof over their heads and groceries, where inequality isn’t exploding, where global warming has been brought under control and people won’t be facing more extreme weather, loss of shelter and farmland, and civilizational collapse. yeah, let’s boost initiatives that want us to spend a chunk of limited financial resources (taxes) on the medically assisted creation of a few thousand more babies per year, tops. wouldn’t want those additional earthlings to miss out on the climate catastrophe, would we? wtaf?!

[@XetaXones]

Nihilism doesn’t help anyone or solve any problem

[@anthonymichaels257]

Get a goldfish

[@kinghippo2034]

Great, I hope it's even harder to access it in the future. Have a good one.

[@XetaXones]

You sound pleasant

[@meaganwickham2128]

Why would anyone want to ungo all these procedures and treatments just to have a kid? Why? What a complete waste of money Just get a dog, way better then kids anyways.

[@Crackrzz]

OK Dr. Hamilton. Glad she retired a while ago, but I aged out of all this funding! 🤬

[@1966johnnywayne]

I don't know ...perhaps they are human, ME gan.

[@meaganwickham2128]

@@1966johnnywayneWell the world is overpopulated as it is, brining more children into this world is just contributing to the worlds overpopulated problem.

[@1966johnnywayne]

@@meaganwickham2128 No, you've just bought into the "Hey White women, save the planet (for rich elites) don't have children, and abort if you "accidentally fall pregnant" programming". You were sold a lie and you embraced it.

[@1966johnnywayne]

@@meaganwickham2128 Hopefully you recognize the lies you've bought into before it's too late.