Recently both Barking and Dagenham CCG and Havering CCG, the two clinical commissioning groups in the constituency, have been singled out by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) due to their failure to provide the number of IVF cycles that they claimed were available to their patients. While Barking and Dagenham CCG and Havering CCG advertise that their patients are have access to three rounds of IVF, the number recommended to maximize fertility, NICE has discovered that in practice the CCGs generally provide only one round.
IVF is a common and highly effective fertility treatment that can be a great help to families hoping to have children but who are unable to conceive on their own. Infertility can be devastating to couples and to individuals, who often experience stress and anxiety surrounding the disease. Three cycles of IVF result in about a 50% chance of conception, as opposed to the roughly 30% chance after just one cycle. Despite these greatly increased odds, many CCGs only offer one round to their patients. This ?postcode lottery' results in patients getting vastly different standards of care depending on where they live.
Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham and Rainham, has been informed of this situation and will be contacting the local CCG's for a full update and breakdown of how they aim to resolve the issue. Jon will also be meeting with the relevant authorities to ensure that his constituents receive the level of care they deserve.
Jon commented: "I am deeply concerned about this issue. Infertility is a heartbreaking disease and patients must be provided with the highest standard of care. I will be working with the Barking and Dagenham and Havering CCG's to find a way to improve the levels of service."