Trump Proposes Federal Rule Allowing Standalone Fertility Insurance Benefits
On Monday, May 11, 2026, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury unveiled a proposed federal rule to let employers offer an optional standalone fertility insurance benefit covering IVF and related care.[1]
The supplemental plan would cover lab tests, medications, genetic testing, IVF and treatment for related conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis.[1] Covered care would have a $120,000 lifetime cap per participant and their beneficiaries, with the cap indexed to inflation for plan years beginning in 2028.[1] After the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, there will be a 60-day public comment period before the administration can finalize it.[1] Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. described U.S. fertility trends as a "fertility crisis" and said declining birth rates threaten the economy and national security.[1]
About one-quarter of large employers already voluntarily cover IVF, and at least a dozen states have mandates requiring some form of private insurance coverage for fertility care.[1]
If finalized, the rule would create an optional supplemental insurance product insurers could sell alongside employer plans, rather than forcing employers to change standard health coverage.[1]
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📌 Key Facts
- On Monday, May 11, 2026, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury jointly unveiled a proposed rule creating an optional standalone supplemental insurance product for fertility care, including IVF.
- The supplemental insurance would cover services to diagnose, mitigate, or treat infertility — including lab tests, medications, genetic testing, IVF — and treatment for related conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis.
- Covered care under the proposal would have a lifetime cap of $120,000 per participant and their beneficiaries, with the cap indexed to inflation for plan years beginning in 2028.
- After the rule is published in the Federal Register, there will be a 60-day public comment period before the administration can finalize it.
- Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. described U.S. fertility trends as a “fertility crisis” and framed declining birth rates as a threat to the economy and national security.
- The article notes that about one-quarter of large employers already voluntarily cover IVF and that at least a dozen states have mandates requiring some form of private insurance coverage for fertility care.
📰 Source Timeline (2)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- On Monday, May 11, 2026, the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Treasury jointly unveiled a proposed rule creating an optional standalone supplemental insurance product for fertility care, including IVF.
- The supplemental insurance would cover services to diagnose, mitigate or treat infertility, including lab tests, medications, genetic testing, IVF and treatment for related conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis.
- Covered care under the proposal would have a lifetime cap of $120,000 per participant and their beneficiaries, with the cap indexed to inflation for plan years beginning in 2028.
- Once the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, there will be a 60-day public comment period before the administration can finalize it.
- Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. described U.S. fertility trends as a 'fertility crisis' and framed declining birth rates as a threat to the economy and national security.
- The article notes that about one-quarter of large employers already voluntarily cover IVF and that at least a dozen states have mandates requiring some form of private insurance coverage for fertility care.