Paying for egg freezing: know your options

By Sahil Vakil, CEO of MYRA Wealth

Note: This blog is a guest post by our partners at MYRA Wealth. MYRA Wealth provides personal finance services for international and multicultural families in the United States, including financial planning, investment management, and tax preparation. MYRA Wealth is dedicated to supporting your finances as they relate to the whole you! Egg freezing can be costly, and Extend Fertility and MYRA Wealth are dedicated to making it more affordable.

If you want to move forward with egg freezing but cost is a barrier, know that there are some options for lowering the total cost and/or funding the procedure.

The Costs of Egg Freezing

*Note all pricing is reflective of 2018 rates. Please refer to the links at the bottom of this page for the most up to date pricing.*

So, what is the cost? On average, it costs $11,000 for one egg freezing cycle. Other costs can include hormone medications, storage (keeping your eggs “on ice” until you might need to use them later on), and the costs of IVF if you do use them.

By freezing your eggs with Extend Fertility, you’re cutting the cost of egg freezing by 40%: your first egg freezing cycle will cost $6,500. Here are the costs of egg freezing, medication, storage, and IVF with Extend Fertility and elsewhere:

	Average	Extend Fertility
Egg freezing cycle	$11,000	$6,500
Hormone medications	$2,000–$5,000	$2,000–$5,000
Storage	$1,100 per year	$350–$450 per year
IVF to use frozen eggs	$9,000	$6,250
Total cost	Approx. $29,000	Approx. $18,000

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Obviously, the clinic you choose has a big impact on the total cost of your care. Factors that can further affect the price include the number of egg freezing cycles you complete, the number of years you store your eggs before using them, the cost of hormone medications from pharmacies in your area, and whether you end up needing to use the eggs via IVF.

Preparing Financially For Egg Freezing

Understand your income, debt, and your budget. Whether alone or with an advisor, it’s important to sit down and look at your income, especially your after-tax income, and the remaining funds after your necessary expenses. This can help you understand how much you will need to save for egg freezing and how long it may take. A helpful app for budgeting is You Need a Budget (YNAB). Digit is an app that watches your spending, determines how much you can afford to save every month, and automatically puts it into a savings account.
Understand the costs of egg freezing over time. Egg freezing costs don’t come all at once. The medications and cycle come first, followed by storage, and later (possibly) IVF. Talk with your healthcare team to understand how many cycles you might need to undergo to freeze enough eggs to give you a good chance at pregnancy later, so you can factor that in to the total cost.
Speak with a financial advisor or financial planner like MYRA Wealth. A financial advisor or planner can provide you with personalized advice based on your unique situation. A financial advisor can help you organize your finances, understand your income and debt, and make decisions based on your unique financial situation. (Many financial advisors offer free consultations!)

Ways To Save On Egg Freezing

Read your employee benefits plan very closely. Some employers cover egg freezing for their employees.
Read your health insurance plan or call your employee benefits representative. Some health insurance plans cover infertility-related costs, such as medications or later IVF to use frozen eggs, partially or in full.
Price shop, negotiate, and ask questions. Be sure to ask clinics for an itemized list of what each package includes and doesn’t include. Some packages and practices may include guarantees such as a certain number of eggs, whereas others may not include necessary parts of your care, like anesthesia or monitoring visits.
Shop around for your fertility drugs. As you read above, fertility drugs are expensive. However, it is possible to find a deal. Call around to different pharmacies to ask about their rates, or ask your healthcare team about pharmacies that may offer special rates to their patients.

Ways to Get The Funds You Need For Egg Freezing

Save! Set an auto-deduction from your bank account on a regular basis, possibly on your pay day, to help save the funds you need for egg freezing over time. Even if you’re saving $50 per paycheck, it adds up!
Invest in a high-yield checking or savings account. While you’re accumulating funds for egg freezing, consider the best place to store and grow your money. Your existing bank account may not be paying you much interest to hold your money, and there may be better options. You might also explore Certificates of Deposit (CDs) which have higher interest rates than standard checking and savings accounts but the cash is less accessible—they have a fixed date when you can withdraw the funds.
Take steps to free up cash. Set goals to put aside small sums, like making coffee or cooking at home instead of dining out, using public transit, or cutting the cable cord.
Explore financing and payment plans for egg freezing. Some lending companies cater to people who are incurring large medical expenses. Explore loans from these vendors, but pay attention to the interest rate and any other required fees.
Use CareCredit or another 0% APR card. Credit cards like CareCredit can offer promotional periods of 0% APR financing which can help you pay for the up-front costs of egg freezing—but be careful of ballooning interest rates after the promotional period is over.
Use a rewards credit card. Fertility clinics will often accept credit cards and this can be a good way to rack up some travel or cash back rewards for you and your family!
Consider asking friends and family to chip in. Sites like GoFundMe and Indiegogo are great places to tell your story and get small (or large) donations from friends to help cover the costs.