(Yicai) Jan. 3 -- Assisted reproductive services are now available on the medical insurance schemes of all 31 provincial-level regions on the Chinese mainland, benefiting over one million people, the National Healthcare Security Administration said in its New Year message.

Northeastern Heilongjiang province became the last provincial-level region in the country to include assisted reproductive services in its medical insurance scheme last month, by offering eight such treatments.

Fertility treatments are now claimable on medical insurance programs nationwide. This comes just 11 months after the NHSA proposed that local governments add in vitro fertilization into their medical insurance programs as part of the nation’s drive to counter a dwindling population.

Each cycle of IVF costs between CNY20,000 (USD2,740) and CNY30,000, Yicai learned from patients in Beijing. The inclusion of fertility treatments in the medical insurance program can save infertile couples between 50 percent and 67 percent of the costs, with out-of-pocket expenses now amounting to between CNY4,000 (USD548) and CNY10,000.

Between 12 and 15 percent of people of childbearing age in China are infertile. Around 300,000 babies are born via IVF on the mainland each year.

Including assisted reproductive services in the health insurance programs allows more families to afford such treatments, increasing their chances of having children, Deng Yong, an expert at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, told Yicai. Moreover, this coverage encourages medical institutions to offer IVF, enhancing accessibility to fertility treatments.

Editor: Kim Taylor