Victorians trying to start or grow their family will now have the opportunity to access public fertility care.
The new services, which will be the first of their kind in the country, will open for referrals on 18 October. The Royal Women’s Hospital and Monash Health will lead public fertility care services in Victoria from two primary hubs located at the services’ Parkville and Clayton campuses. Over the next two years they will partner with health services across Victoria to provide statewide coverage.
Services will be rolled out in a phased approach and will treat a limited number of people initially, to ensure safe care for patients and allow time to build the required workforce and infrastructure.
Once fully implemented, public fertility care services will include in vitro fertilisation (IVF), fertility preservation, genetic testing, donor and surrogacy services – including Australia’s first public sperm and egg bank – and a range of other assisted reproductive treatments, counselling, information and support.
To be eligible, people will need to be Victorian residents, hold a Medicare card and meet clinical criteria. Patients will need a referral from a general practitioner (GP) or relevant specialist, after which they will be placed on a waiting list for an initial appointment with a fertility specialist at one of the participating health services.
For more information, visit the Better Health .
Reviewed 31 October 2022