An additional 135 applications for in-vitro fertilisation treatment are being considered as well as those of 53 couples that have already been approved, according to new figures released by the Health Ministry yesterday.
Minister Konrad Mizzi had said in Parliament earlier this week that only 53 out of 225 IVF applications had been approved for the treatment at Mater Dei Hospital since the service started being offered last November.
Updating the figures, the ministry said that apart from the 135 applications being considered another 78 were awaiting consideration while just 14 couples who requested the treatment had been rejected because they did not meet the eligibility criteria.
Opposition health spokesman Claudio Grech was critical of the fact that the ministry released new figures just two days after the parliamentary reply.
“I fail to see why the information was not given correctly at the outset in Parliament. However, the published information raises more questions than answers because, apart from a stark lack of transparency, it seems the government is limiting the number of IVF cycles to be provided,” he said.
I fail to see why the information was not given correctly at the outset in Parliament
Mr Grech said IVF treatment could not be treated as an “option” or as some “cosmetic treatment”.
“Couples resort to IVF because they are constrained to do so and not out of choice and they do so after significant hardship and emotional stress,” he added.
He said Labour was breaking its electoral promise to offer IVF treatment to all couples that needed it for free. “One cannot ignore the fact that government broke its electoral promise twofold on this count. Firstly, those selected have to pay for the hormone treatment (that is, it is not entirely free) and, secondly, not all those applying are being given the treatment,” Mr Grech noted.
A circular on the eligibility criteria published by the health department on Monday states that while every couple can avail itself of the services offered by the Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) clinic, the IVF procedure within the public health service is only available to “biologically childless prospective parents”.
Free IVF treatment is also available to women aged between 25 and 42 where the couple has infertility problems.
The maximum age limit of 42 years means all procedures have to be fully carried out before the woman reaches 43.
Women under 40 will be offered a maximum of three cycles of IVF, while women aged between 40 and 42 will be offered only two cycles.
Couples can receive the treatment if the cause of infertility is amenable to IVF treatment or in cases of unexplained infertility for two years. This includes mild endometriosis or mild male factor infertility as defined by the World Health Organisation.
In all cases where investigations show there is no chance of pregnancy and where IVF is the only effective treatment, the couple is to be referred directly for IVF treatment without having to wait for the two-year period, the health department says.
Couples need to provide evidence of counselling prior, during and after the process. Referral of couples to the ART clinic can be made by obstetrics, gynaecology and family medicine specialists.