In honor of National Infertility Awareness Week beginning today, April 22, America’s Work Force Union Podcast featured Dr. Janet Choi, a double-board certified reproductive endocrinologist, and Stacey Hofert, Vice President of Labor and Trust, from Progyny. They discussed what they are doing to help individuals in the trades receive better care across the fertility, family building and women’s health continuum. They also talked about expanding benefits and closing the gaps in coverage that exist today.
As many labor groups expand their efforts to recruit more women, fertility benefits are becoming an expected benefit by the younger members. The World Health Organization and American Medical Association have recognized infertility as a disease, and 21 states have passed fertility insurance coverage laws. These are reasonable first steps for expanding fertility benefits for women in labor, according to Hofert. To keep pace, Hofert said that Taft-Hartley plans recognize the need for expanding benefits despite not being required to follow state mandates.
When discussing current coverage and plan designs available to women in labor, Dr. Choi discussed the limitations in place. Because the traditional definition of infertility creates a misconception that incidentally creates gaps in fertility coverage, women struggle to obtain proper care, Hofert said. Many of the limitations prevent progressive care benefits, including a “Dollar Max” model that she said drives irrational and poor treatment decisions. On top of that, Dr. Choi said most benefits do not and cannot track outcomes of treatment plans for infertility patients
To address the gaps in fertility care, Hofert said it will be important for benefit plans to prioritize women’s health equity. Dr. Choi agreed and shared the different ways infertility impacts members. The examples go beyond just physical, with most patients reporting a decrease in their mental health. As the modern workforce continues evolving and the makeup of members in labor organizations diversifies, gaps in coverage will need to be resolved.
This is what Dr. Choi, Hofert and Progyny excel at, providing thoughtful and fair solutions for all. To learn more about what Progyny can do for your group, please visit Progyny’s website.
Listen to the episode above to learn more about fertility care for women in the trades.
America’s Work Force is the only daily labor podcast in the US and has been on the air since 1993, supplying listeners with useful, relevant input into their daily lives through fact-finding features, in-depth interviews, informative news segments and practical consumer reports. America’s Work Force is committed to providing an accessible venue in which America's workers and their families can hear discussion on important, relevant topics such as employment, healthcare, legislative action, labor-management relations, corporate practices, finances, local and national politics, consumer reports and labor issues.
America’s Work Force Union Podcast is brought to you in part by our sponsors: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Musicians Local 4, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes-IBT, Boyd Watterson, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, Communication Workers of America, Mechanical Insulators Labor Management Cooperative Trust, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Crafts, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 6, Ironworkers Great Lakes District Council, Melwood, The Labor Citizen newspaper, Laborers International Union of North America, The National Labor Office of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Coast Area Labor Federation, Ohio Federation of Teachers, United Labor Agency, United Steelworkers.
