Better access to fertility care essential for global health says WHO

According to a WHO report, one in six people around the world is affected by infertility and lack of access to affordable care.

Hyderabad: Infertility is a reproduction condition in which people fail to achieve a pregnancy after 12 months of regular unprotected sexual intercourse. This condition affects men as well as women. In an attempt to understand this condition, WHO analysed all the available studies conducted on fertility from the year 1990 to 2021. According to this analysis, 17.5 per cent of the population around the world experiences infertility in their lifetime. According to the UN Health Agency, these rates are "comparable" for high, middle, and low-income countries.

WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, says that the report reveals an important truth - infertility does not discriminate. According to Ghebreyesus, the proportion of people affected showcases the need to widen access to fertility care and make sure that this issue is no longer sidelined in health research and policy, and effective and affordable ways to attain parenthood are available for people.

WHO reveals that despite the prevalence of infertility, diagnosis and treatments such as In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) remain underfunded, and patients find themselves priced, with no choice except to cover the costs out of their pockets, which might lead to devastating consequences. WHO's Director of Sexual Reproductive Health and Research, Dr Pascale Allotey says that millions of people around the world have faced catastrophic healthcare costs after seeking treatment for infertility, often termed a "medical poverty trap".

WHO reveals that people belonging to poor countries spend a greater proportion of their incomes on fertility care, rather than those belonging to wealthier countries. According to a UN health agency co-funded research on infertility costs in low and middle-income countries, a single round of IVF can cost more than the average annual income.

Dr Allotey insists that better policies and public financing can improve access to treatment significantly and protect poorer households from going down the poverty line. WHO stresses that apart from financial hardships, infertility is also connected to "distress and stigma", and an increased risk of intimate partner violence.

Dr Allotey says that in the face of multiple negative impacts of infertility on people's health worldwide, this condition should become a priority for universal health coverage. WHO stated that fertility care is a core part of sexual and reproductive health, and responding to infertility can mitigate gender inequality.

This report has highlighted a 'persistent' lack of data related to infertility in many countries along with insufficient availability of services. WHO has called for better national infertility statistics that can be disaggregated by age and cause in order to target interventions and support the prevention of this condition.