BRITAIN: Thousands of infertile women in Britain could receive free IVF treatment on the National Health Service if new guidelines announced yesterday are adopted.
The National Institute of Clinical Excellence (Nice) has recommended that women under the age of 40 should, in certain circumstances, receive free fertility treatment, costing as much as £15,000 per person.
But both the Conservative and Liberal Democrat politicians voiced fears that the massive cost, which could run into hundreds of millions of pounds, may lead to much-needed money being diverted from other aspects of the health service.
Nice has been commissioned by the Department of Health to develop national NHS guidelines on IVF treatment. Its draft proposals will undergo a four-week consultation period before the finished version is presented to the Department of Health in February next year.
The guidelines recommend that women aged between 23 and 39 should receive free IVF treatment if the cause of infertility has been appropriately diagnosed or if the cause remains undiagnosed and the couple remain infertile after three years of trying to conceive.
They also advise that women under 23 with a diagnosed cause of infertility should be eligible for treatment without having to try for a baby for three years.
The treatment will also be available where the male partner has a diagnosed problem such as a low sperm count.
The move was welcomed by infertility campaigners, but there was concern among politicians and charities about the cost.
Mr Simon Burns, the UK shadow minister for health, said: "However welcome this will be for couples unable to conceive, the Government has made no new money available, nor has it ring-fenced the money for the IVF treatment.
"So with the financial pressure on the NHS it will create a situation where Peter robs Paul to meet the commitment." - (PA)