On October 15, the Ningxia Medical Security Bureau announced the implementation of a new policy that expands basic health insurance coverage to include various assisted reproductive technologies, such as egg retrieval procedures. This move is expected to alleviate the financial burden on families struggling with infertility, giving more couples the chance to achieve their dreams of parenthood.
The policy encompasses ten key assisted reproductive services, including egg retrieval, embryo culture, and embryo transfer. The specific services now included in the insurance coverage are egg retrieval, embryo culture, embryo transfer, in vitro maturation of immature oocytes, assisted hatching of embryos, tissue and cell biopsy related to assisted reproduction, artificial insemination, transcervical artificial insemination, sperm selection processing, sperm extraction, and intracytoplasmic sperm injection. Additionally, three extra-cost services have also been added: blastocyst culture, embryo freezing and thawing, and oocyte activation.
Several hospitals in Ningxia have recently established specialized outpatient clinics dedicated to treating infertility through assisted reproductive technology, with no annual cap on insurance reimbursement for these conditions. The out-of-pocket thresholds and reimbursement rates comply with Ningxia’s policies on outpatient chronic disease treatment under basic health insurance. Residents and employees covered under local insurance can receive treatment for infertility within the designated medical institutions, with applicable medications and treatments included in the coverage.
This new policy is anticipated to significantly reduce the economic strain on patients, providing access to higher-quality medical services and potentially enhancing birth rates, thereby contributing to an optimized population structure and sustainable social development.
Notably, Ningxia is not alone in this initiative. In recent months, other regions across China—including Beijing, Guangxi, Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Xinjiang, Shandong, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Qinghai, Jilin, Jiangsu, Hebei, Anhui, Hainan, Fujian, Henan, Shaanxi, Tibet, Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, Hunan, Sichuan, Shanxi, and Guangdong—have also incorporated assisted reproductive services into their health insurance coverage.
