Hampton in Arden couple shocked at free IVF rejection by NHS
Mrs Standen was told by her consultant at Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield that, because she had already had a round of IVF, she was no longer eligible for free treatment. The policy is the same across much of the West Midlands including Birmingham, the Black Country, Shropshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire. Elsewhere in the country, only two other ICBs will not offer IVF on the NHS after private treatment."It's such a slow process so we decided to do private because wanted to speed it up because of the age," Mr Standen told the BBC, adding that the regional differences were "unfair"."I don't see how they can make that decision and turn around to somebody and say 'that's it, you're not going to have a kid'."
A spokesperson for the Birmingham and Solihull ICB said they understood the difficult, emotional journey couples were on when it came to fertility treatment."Criteria for accessing NHS-funded IVF services are set locally and are based on clinical evidence and the needs of our population to ensure fair and effective use of NHS resources," they added."Where there are exceptional clinical circumstances, patients who do not meet this criteria may be referred by their clinician for treatment via an Individual Funding Request."The couple have now paid more than £40,000 for three rounds of IVF which were all unsuccessful. They said they decided to stop trying and instead find contentment with their family as it is.The couple renewed their commitment to each other at BBC CWR's We Still Do celebration in February.
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