ASRM Launches New Center for Leadership and Policy, Releases First Report

WASHINGTON, Dec. 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Society for Reproductive Medicine's (ASRM) newly launched Center for Policy and Leadership has released a groundbreaking new report, targeted to federal policymakers, entitled, Reproductive Health Care: A National Priority that Cannot Wait. The report serves as a blueprint for making access to and Innovation in reproductive health care a national priority. It offers decision-makers and thought leaders recommendations that ASRM hopes will serve as a blueprint for action for policymakers on both the federal and state levels in 2021 and beyond. Recommendations detailed in the report fall into three primary categories and include, but are not limited to, the following: 

Recommendations to Expand Access to Reproductive Medicine

• Pass a national infertility insurance mandate. Specifically, require all health plans offered in group and individual markets to cover infertility treatment
• Establish permanent Infertility benefits for active-duty members of the U.S. military, veterans, and employees of the Veteran's Administration

Recommendations to Address Unique Barriers to Reproductive Medicine

• Pass a national mandate to enforce insurance coverage for fertility preservation for those at-risk of iatrogenic infertility
• Increase funding for increased reproductive health education for students in middle and high schools, colleges and universities, medical schools and postgraduate medical training
• Recommendations to Increase the National Investment in Reproductive Medicine-Related

Research

• Increase funding for research in human reproductive disorders, including at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
• Lift the prohibition on human embryo research and allow the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop oversight of the ethics of research proposals

With this release, ASRM also announces the launch of the ASRM Center for Policy and Leadership, which will build on the organization's longstanding role as a leading policy voice on Capitol Hill and in state capitals. The Center will offer, over time, a clearinghouse of resources and information on matters of importance to the field. In addition to serving as a go-to resource for lawmakers, the Center will produce timely research reports, policy papers, and host related events.

Regarding the Center's launch and the report's release, ASRM President, Hugh Taylor, MD, says, "I am excited by the potential of this new Center to influence and shape policies that will have a

tangible impact for both ASRM's members and the patients they serve. I can't wait to see what the Center accomplishes and hope that this new report will gain the national attention it deserves--as reproductive medicine is a national priority that cannot wait."

Ricardo Azziz, MD, MPH, MBA, ASRM CEO, adds, "This report and the Center serve to cement ASRM's leadership on policy matters of importance to the reproductive health and medicine community. With experts spanning the field of reproductive medicine, ASRM is uniquely positioned to provide thought leaders and policy makers with the information and resources they need to make informed decisions to advance access to reproductive medicine and investments in medical research."

About ASRM: For almost a century, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) has been the global leader in multidisciplinary reproductive medicine research, ethical practice, and education. ASRM impacts reproductive care and science worldwide by creating funding opportunities for advancing reproduction research and discovery, by providing evidence-based education and public health information, and by advocating for reproductive healthcare professionals and the patients they serve. With members in more than 100 countries, the Society is headquartered in Washington, DC, with additional operations in Birmingham, AL. www.asrm.org

SOURCE American Society for Reproductive Medicine