VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — In vitro fertilization, or IVF, has been in the headlines the last few weeks, following Alabama’s State Supreme Court ruling that put the treatment in jeopardy.
Thursday, the Alabama legislature passed bills offering protections for IVF to providers.
The treatment has been around for decades, and its history started in Hampton Roads. The first person born in the United States via IVF was born at Norfolk General in 1981.
Dr. Robin Poe-Zeigler from CCRM Fertility of Virginia Beach spoke with Digital Host Sarah Goode about IVF in Virginia. They discuss the toll on patients, access and more. Watch the full conversation in the video player on this page.
Poe-Zeigler has worked with patients of all ages, from those in their twenties to fifties who are facing trouble conceiving, due to medical conditions, history and age.
She said it can be a rollercoaster emotionally, physically and financially.
Poe-Zeigler discussed what patients go through throughout the IVF process. Watch the clip in the video player, below.
The process takes a toll in many ways and it is helpful to have a support system.
Patient fears and concerns include a variety of things including the cost, needles, and procedures.
“There’s a lot of time investment,” Poe-Zeigler said. “There’s the physical investment that they kind of have to get themselves up and you know, in the mindset of, okay I’m going to be using all these injections but it’s going to be worth it.”
Poe-Zeigler is thankful for the advancements in medicine, that with younger women, most of the cycles are successful. But, there are always times when the cycles are not successful.
“I try to have them as informed and as protected and I try to strap them in as tightly as possible before I put them on that rollercoaster ride because there are so many ups and downs that go along with an IVF cycle,” Poe-Ziegler said.
The expense of IVF is one topic that is regularly discussed.
“The thing I have mostly had to talk to my patients mostly about has not been the legality of this but more so the financial aspect,” Poe-Zeigler said.
Watch Poe-Zeigler talk about insurance and healthcare costs in the clip, below.
While she’s seen access increase with company benefits and insurance coverage, she said it’s difficult to see what’s happening on the legal side.
“One of every five women in the United States are suffering from some degree of infertility,” Poe-Zeigler said. “And, to not be able to access the full spectrum of what is scientifically available to patient’s these days is, my opinion is, just absurd, it does not seem right.”
Poe-Zeigler encourages people to seek help for infertility early, to learn the options and find out the best course of action.
Watch the full Digital Desk conversation to hear more from Poe-Zeigler.
