Effect of inclusion of assisted reproductive technologies in the state health insurance programme in Russia

Abstract

Assisted reproductive technologies (ART) are an infertility treatment tool. In Russia, more than 250 centers implementing infertility treatment with the help of ART have been opened in 67 regions. In 2014, in vitro fertilization (IVF) was included in the programme of state guarantees, and since 2016 the service can be obtained within the Mandatory Health Insurance (MHI) system. Author of this study analyzes how the impact of economic factors on fertility with the use of ART has changed in relation to the inclusion of IVF in the MHI system, and what social factors affect the usage of this technology. The analysis bases on the panel data for the regions of Russia covering the period from 2011 to 2017. The fixed effects method was used to assess the impact of various factors. The study shows that the population income level has a significant positive impact on the proportion of births with the use of ART even after the inclusion of IVF into the MHI programme. At the same time, the inclusion of IVF in the MHI programme has led to an increase in the proportion of births using ART. The positive effect of this inclusion is higher in wealthier regions. Among social factors, a significant impact has the accessibility of information about the procedure, which is measured by the share of population having access to the Internet.