December 9, 2024 (Gilbert, AZ) — Over the weekend the House Armed Services Committee and the Senate Armed Services Committee released the negotiated conference report for the Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) National Defence Authorization Act (NDAA), which left out the provisions expanding TRICARE coverage to include all assisted reproductive technology (ART). Despite both the House and Senate having bipartisan support for provisions in both versions of the NDAA that would have expanded coverage for fertility treatments like IVF, a compromise could not be reached. 

Building Military Families Network is profoundly disappointed that these provisions were left out of the final language of the NDAA when members of Congress are poised to see their comprehensive fertility coverage, including IVF, begin in January. Service members face higher rates of infertility than the general population, but are still denied healthcare coverage for fertility treatments like IVF. Currently, TRICARE coverage for fertility treatments is only available to those service members with a service-connected injury or illness that results in their infertility. This limited coverage is often complicated and burdensome to prove and excludes many military families from receiving treatments for the disease of infertility. 

Building Military Families Network was happy to see many much-needed provisions for the community, including a new demonstration program for cryopreservation and storing gametes, a huge step in increasing family building options for our community. This new program will reimburse covered service members for the retrieval, testing, cryopreservation,  storage, and shipping of gametes. Under the program, reimbursements will be given in the amounts of $500 for sperm, and $10,000 for eggs. The demonstration directs the Secretary of Defense to make several determinations regarding the program in the year following the enactment of the NDAA, and Building Military Families Network will provide updates as that information is released to keep the community informed. 

Building Military Families Network knows that military families face unique challenges when starting or growing their families due to deployments, frequent moves, and other financial stressors. That is why they are dedicated to ensuring that expansions to TRICARE coverage for fertility treatments include not only all family building options but also our entire military community. Alongside other organizations and groups, Building Military Families Network will continue to raise awareness and advocate for increased access to all family building options for military and veteran families.

“It is disheartening to learn that a compromise couldn’t be reached to ensure that our military families have the same level of access to fertility treatments that members of Congress will soon have. Our military families deserve to have options to treat the disease of infertility and to experience the joy of building a family like so many others have without risking debt to do so. We celebrate the progress reached in the form of the cryopreservation demonstration and are grateful that Congress is recognizing the need for increased access to care. However, more needs to be done to ensure that our military families can build the family of their dreams by increasing access and coverage to all family building options ” said Julie Eshelman, Founder, CEO & President of Building Military Families Network. 

For more information on Building Military Families Network and for ways to get involved, please visit www.buildingmilitaryfamiliesnetwork.org.

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About Building Military Families Network

Building Military Families Network is a 501c3 organization with a mission to provide an empowering and supportive network to military and veteran families navigating the challenges in the family-building process through support groups, education, and resources. Their Education Center and Resource Library empower military and veteran families with all the information and tools they need on their journey to parenthood. The Support Group Program provides families with peer support and builds community. Their advocacy efforts are focused on increasing insurance coverage and improving access to all family-building options for military and veteran families. Building Military Families Network is a beacon of hope for building military families. 

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