Larsen Ryan G, Bowdino Cole S, Mathes Melissa A, Gustin Stephanie L, Deibert Christopher M
Division of Urologic Surgery, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA.
Transl Androl Urol. 2020 Oct;9(5):2107-2112. doi: 10.21037/tau-20-944.
Though insurance coverage is evolving for male infertility services, most patients continue to pay out of pocket. These costs such as semen analysis and intracytoplasmic sperm injection preparation may affect the utilization of those services. We sought to determine online price transparency specifically for male infertility services on the websites of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) clinics in the US.
In this cross-sectional analysis, pricing data was acquired from each clinic on the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) website as of July 2019. Each website was examined for availability and cost of services. Pricing data that required applying for a quote or a phone call was excluded. Mean price was calculated for each service. Additionally, practice location in an insurance coverage mandated state (ICMS) was also analyzed to evaluate for any effect on price transparency.
Only 24.7% (89/361) of SART clinic websites included any pricing information. Of clinics with websites (361/383), 16.3% (59/361) had ≥2 prices reported and only 5.0% (18/361) had ≥6 prices reported. Only 3.6% (13/361) reported prices for male-related infertility services. Average semen analysis price was $161 of 10 reporting clinics. Four clinics reported sperm cryopreservation or annual sperm storage price, $388 and $555, respectively. Sperm retrieval cost $244 at the two reporting clinics. ICMS did not affect male price transparency, ICMS 3.1% (6/194) non-ICMS 4.2% (7/167) (P=0.576).
Price transparency of SART clinics on websites is relatively poor with only about one-quarter of clinics providing any cost information at all. Male infertility related pricing information is even more rarely reported compared to other IVF services potentially causing a stronger barrier for males to pursue infertility treatment.
尽管男性不育症服务的保险覆盖范围在不断发展，但大多数患者仍需自掏腰包。精液分析和卵胞浆内单精子注射准备等费用可能会影响这些服务的使用情况。我们试图确定美国体外受精（IVF）诊所网站上男性不育症服务的在线价格透明度。
在这项横断面分析中，截至2019年7月，从辅助生殖技术协会（SART）网站上的每个诊所获取定价数据。检查每个网站上服务的可用性和成本。排除需要申请报价或打电话获取的定价数据。计算每项服务的平均价格。此外，还分析了在保险覆盖强制要求州（ICMS）的执业地点，以评估对价格透明度的任何影响。
SART诊所网站中只有24.7%（89/361）包含任何定价信息。在有网站的诊所（361/383）中，16.3%（59/361）报告了≥2种价格，只有5.0%（18/361）报告了≥6种价格。只有3.6%（13/361）报告了与男性相关的不育症服务价格。10家报告诊所的平均精液分析价格为161美元。4家诊所报告了精子冷冻保存或年度精子储存价格，分别为388美元和555美元。两家报告诊所的精子采集费用为244美元。ICMS对男性价格透明度没有影响，ICMS为3.1%（6/194），非ICMS为4.2%（7/167）（P = 0.576）。
SART诊所网站上的价格透明度相对较差，只有约四分之一的诊所提供任何成本信息。与其他IVF服务相比，与男性不育相关的定价信息报告得更少，这可能会给男性寻求不育治疗带来更大的障碍。
