Friday, February 28, 2014

Celebration!

Today was such a great day for those facing infertility in Utah. I have been looking forward to HB 347 going to the House of Representatives floor all week. I have been researching and following the bill. Today was torturous. Everyone had originally thought that the bill would be voted on yesterday but then it got pushed back to this morning, then today it got pushed back to the afternoon session. As I was watching all the bills go through, I thought it may even be pushed back more but thankfully it wasn't. It would have been hard to wait all weekend for the results. I kept getting more and more anxious as the bill got closer and closer to the top of the list. As soon as I saw the bill was being voted on, I pulled up the bill online. It tells you the results as soon as they happen. I was so excited and got very emotional when I saw it pop up that the bill had passed with an unanimous vote of 67-0. This is such a huge step forward in regards to infertility in Utah. Right now insurance doesn't cover anything for infertility treatment so this will be such a huge help and blessing to those facing this trial in their lives. The bill goes on to the Senate now and will be voted on next week.

For those who have asked me what HB 347 is, it's a two part bill for insurance coverage for infertility treatments. The first part of the bill amends the adoption indemnity benefit. A lot of people don't know this but in Utah the adoption indemnity makes insurance companies pay up to $4,000 in adoption fees for couples who meet certain requirements, as if it was a maternity benefit. HB 347 would amend this indemnity so that the $4,000 could be used for infertility treatments instead of adoption if the couple chose to. The second part of the bill would allow for an insurance rider or opt in coverage for fertility treatments. Couples would have their regular medical insurance but would have an option for additional coverage for fertility treatments. Those that don't want the fertility coverage won't need to opt in on it.

We are so excited about this bill and what it means to so many in Utah, including ourselves. We are so excited to see if this passes and we are hoping and praying that it does. We were so excited for the hope that it has brought to so many people. We are happy to see the infertility awareness growing and to see infertility being recognized for the disease that it is.

We were so excited today about this amazing result that we had a little celebration. We went to one of our favorite places, Kneaders, for dinner to celebrate. We are hoping and praying this will pass in the Senate!

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