Fertility treatment on the NHS to be expanded

A big expansion in IVF for infertile couples on the NHS is promised in new guidelines to be published today designed to end the "postcode lottery" for treatment.

Only one in five attempts at in vitro fertilisation is currently funded by the NHS but recommendations from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence will say that couples should be entitled to up to three cycles of treatment using fresh embryos on the NHS.

Treatment is recommended for women up to the age of 40 where the cause of their infertility is known and IVF is deemed appropriate, or where they have tried to conceive for at least three years without success. Excess embryos produced during treatment may be frozen and used in subsequent attempts, it will say.

The draft guidelines, which will be posted on the institute's website, are being published for consultation before final guidelines are issued next February. An earlier draft, circulated privately to interested parties, was leaked to the press last month.

The proposals are likely to increase the financial pressure on the NHS to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds a year. One in six couples is estimated to be infertile and there are 27,000 attempts at IVF each year. The average cost of each attempt is £2,500 privately, but free treatment could see demand soar.

Critics say the expenditure cannot be justified if it means taking funds from other parts of the NHS, such as cancer services. They say there is no "right " to have children and diagnosing and treating injury and disease should be the priority for the NHS.

Sheena Young, of the national infertility support group Child, countered: "I would not dream of saying infertility is in the same league as cancer. But it is definitely an illness and it should be treated and funded like any other illness."

Professor Alison Murdoch, who chairs the British Fertility Society, said: "We are delighted there is now official recognition that the trauma suffered by couples unable to conceive is a legitimate call on NHS resources.

"Hopefully, the guidelines will now see an end to postcode prescribing caused by facilities which are wide ranging across the country."