A bill requiring insurance coverage for fertility preservation services was tabled on Wednesday by the House Commerce and Economic Development Committee.
House bill 95 was co-sponsored by Rep. Pamelya Herndon (D-Albuquerque) and four other lawmakers to help ensure that women and men who face the possibility of infertility due to medical treatment still have the opportunity to have children through fertility preservation services. These include egg freezing and sperm banking before cancer treatment.
Joyce Dillon Reinecke is executive director for Alliance for Fertility Preservation and also a cancer survivor who used this service.
“I have met hundreds of cancer patients, survivors and family members, and have heard about their fears, not only in facing cancer, but also about losing their chance to one day have children,” she said.
A fiscal analysis put the cost of the bill at $93 million, with the bulk of that coming from federal matching funds through Medicaid.
The high price tag was an issue for some lawmakers. Minority Floor Leader Representative Gail Armstrong (R-Magdalena) asked whether there was enough funding in the Medicaid budget and in the Health Care Authority right now.
“It would be an unfunded mandate if we pass this bill on to the Health Care Authority, because it's not specifically in their budget right now, even though you're saying they would probably have the money to do it,” she said.
Kat Sanchez, policy director at Bold Futures, said she was disheartened by the decision.
“We want folks who want to be able to start their families to have help in doing so. We know that it can be costly, and that puts it out of reach for some folks who might have issues,” she said.
She said that the decision ultimately came down to the numbers.
“Really comes down to how much was the state going to have to pick up in terms of either Medicaid or just picking up from the health care exchange,” she said.
In a 6-to-4 vote, the bill was tabled by the committee, which likely means it’s dead for this legislative session.
Support from the coverage comes from the Thornburg Foundation.
