NHS IVF Funding
If you need help starting or growing your family, the first thing you’re likely to do is go to your GP. But what many people don’t realise is that some GPs can refer their patients to CARE, meaning you might be able to have your IVF or fertility treatment funded by the NHS.
Am I eligible for NHS funding for IVF?
Whether or not you can have NHS funding to finance your IVF or fertility treatment is ultimately decided by your local clinical commissioning group (CCG). However, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has set out a series of guidelines about who should receive NHS-funded treatment, and how much.
What are the criteria for receiving IVF treatment on the NHS?
According to NICE, women under 40 should be offered three rounds of NHS-funded IVF treatment if they’ve been trying unsuccessfully to start a family for two or more years, or if they’ve had 12 or more unsuccessful rounds of artificial insemination.
If you’re a woman aged between 40 and 42, NICE suggests you should have one round of NHS-funded IVF treatment if you meet all of the following criteria:
- You’ve been trying to start your family for two or more years, or have had 12 or more unsuccessful rounds of artificial insemination
You’ve never had IVF
You don’t have any problems with low ovarian reserves
You’re aware of the implications for over 40s and affect of your age on treatment
Your local CCG might also have some of their own criteria; for example, they might only offer NHS-funded IVF or fertility treatment to those who don’t already have children, or to non-smokers.
Same-sex couples seeking IVF treatment can be offered funding for several rounds of intrauterine insemination (IUI), In vitro fertilisation (IVF), or both.
If you’d like to know whether you qualify for fertility treatment with the NHS, the best thing to do is contact your CCG directly. Your GP can also advise on local funding criteria and whether the IVF cost on the NHS will be covered.
Northampton has contracts with the following ICB's : BLMK - Bedford , Luton and Milton Keynes , Northampton - Northampton , Kettering and Corby , NHS Oxfordshire ICB - Berkshire West , Buckinghamshire , Frimley and Oxfordshire , East and North Hertfordshire ICB Cambridge and Peterborough
Tunbridge Wells: Kent & Medway ICB and Sussex ICB
Woking have: Surrey Heartlands, Southampton/Isle of Wight Oxfordshire, MOD, Frimley ICB
Manchester: NHS Greater Manchester ICB, NHS Lancashire and South ICB, Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent ICB.
Nottingham: Bassetlaw PCT,NHS Commissioning Board, NHS Derby and Derbyshire, NHS East Leicestershire & Rutland, NHS East Staffordshire, NHS England, NHS Leicester City, NHS Lincolnshire, NHS Lincolnshire East , NHS Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, NHS West Leicestershire, NHS Cambridge and Peterborough , NHS Midlands and Lancashire
Leeds have: NHS Humber and North Yorkshire ICB, NHS South Yorkshire ICB,NHS West Yorkshire ICB
London
- East and North Hertfordshire ICB
- Cambridge and Peterborough
- Mid and South Essex
