Study validates IVF data accuracy of national commercial claims database

Written by Alexander Kime from The American Society for Reproductive Medicine, where it was originally published

A study conducted by James Dupree, M.D., M.P.H., of Michigan Medicine, finds commercial claims databases can be used with accuracy to identify in vitro fertilization cycles covered by insurance and key clinical outcomes, such as rates of pregnancies, live births and live birth types.

The results also demonstrated that CDM is an accurate and comprehensive data source with many potential use cases by a broad array of stakeholders.

The results were published in the journal Fertility and Sterility.

About the research

The study involved an evaluation of in vitro fertilization cycles covered by health insurance using a national commercial claims database, Clinformatics Data Mart, and compared key clinical events against national IVF registries.

The results showed that CDM can be used with accuracy to identify IVF cycles covered by insurance and key clinical outcomes, such as rates of pregnancies, live births and live birth types.

Furthermore, the results demonstrated that CDM is an accurate and comprehensive data source with many potential use cases by a broad array of stakeholders. 

Key takeaways from the study include:

• How policymakers and employers can use CDM to conduct research about IVF insurance coverage
• How policymakers who are considering insurance coverage for IVF can use CDM to model the impact of hypothetical policies
• How employers, who are considering IVF coverage policy expansion such as coverage for multiple treatment cycles, can use CDM to study the resulting impact of changed policies
• And how patients, who have private health insurance and are considering IVF, can also be reassured that outcomes they may expect after IVF using private health insurance are similar to national benchmarks
  
  Currently, only a handful of states have health insurance mandates to cover IVF and fertility preservation.

Additional authors: David Suh, M.P.H.; Phyllis Yan, M.A.; Rodney L. Dunn, M.S.; Edward C. Norton, AB, Ph.D.; Vanessa K. Dalton, M.D., M.P.H.; Erica E. Marsh, M.D., MSCI; Marissa S. Weiss, M.D., MSCE; and James M. Dupree, M.D., M.P.H. 

Paper cited: "Using National IVF Registries to Validate Clinical Outcomes Following IVF Covered by Health Insurance," Fertility & Sterility. DOI: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.12.015