Plan Ahead Before Taking Fertility Drugs for Financial Security

It pays to plan ahead before taking fertility drugs. You may be beginning a new family very soon, or you may be beginning a journey that involves expensive infertility treatments before finally getting pregnant. Either way you can cut costs and protect your family finances by educating yourself about insurance options, and how to leverage the tax code in your favor.

Couples begin taking fertility drugs after trying to conceive naturally without any luck. Fertility drugs are often the first line of therapy, and many couples are blessed with a pregnancy right away, while others move on to more intrusive and expensive methods for getting pregnant. Both outcomes require planning and timely action.

Supplemental Insurance Helps Couples Who Conceive

Those couples fortunate to conceive shortly after taking fertility drugs experience the joy and worry that comes with pregnancy. Many working women in the U.S. take an unpaid maternity leave. In addition, 25% of pregnancies experience complications which may require mom to miss additional unpaid time away from work prior to delivery.

By purchasing supplemental insurance before taking fertility drugs to get pregnant, your normal labor and delivery will be a covered benefit. Supplemental insurance creates maternity leave pay, and protects mom's income if she misses work prior to delivery.

Check Your Insurance Policy

Other couples will need to more aggressive infertility treatments, and many of these procedures are not covered by most insurance plans. Fifteen states have mandates that require some level of coverage for certain employer groups. Each state rule differs in what is mandated, and who the mandate applies to. Learn about these rules, and check what your insurance plan does and does not cover. Look at plans from both spouses before deciding which has the best coverage for infertility.

Leverage the Tax Code

Many infertility treatments wind up being self paid. These treatments are classified as medical expenses, so you have an opportunity to cut your costs with tax savings. If you deduct these expenses on your 1040 form, remember that only those expenses exceeding 7.5% of your adjusted gross income provide any tax relief. Use your flexible spending account at work to get first dollar tax savings.

View the original article here