Fertility Practitioners & Services
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Aug 2006
Hello:
I am thinking of switching to Blue Shield HMO from Kaiser. I
am just starting to be seen at the Kaiser fertility clinic, and
both my Kaiser and potential Blue Shield only pay for 50% of
treatment. I am wondering what current recommendations might be
for a Blue Shield OB/gyn in the area who also deals with
fertility issues. I'm also wondering if more simple fertility
issues (non-IVF)could be addressed as a regular office visit to
an Ob/gyn, and not a fertility specialist, which would be
covered in full as opposed to 50%. At Kaiser you are
automatically transferred to the fertility clinic so everything
is only covered at 50%, even though I would imagine some of
the tests could be done by a regular ob/gyn. So, I guess I'm
trying to find a good ob/gyn who is good with fertility issues
and might also be willing to see patients for this as part of
a regular office visit.
Thanks,
Rebecca
I have heard that some primary care docs and OB's will give
Clomid without asking a patient to see a fertility doc first. I'm
not sure who they are, but you'd best just be direct and ask
them. If you are uncomfortable with it, just first say ''I am
trying to optimize my insurance coverage for fertility treatment,
which can be very, very costly.''
By the way, lucky you that your insurance pays 50%!
JM
Hello Rebecca,
I don't know about Ob's who also deal with fertility issues,
but I do have some advice. My husband and I have a 17 month old
son who was conceived using injectible medications combined
with IUI. (I'm hoping you know about the infertilty lingo...)
This was while we lived on the East Coast. We moved to Walnut
Creek about 8 months ago and have recently been thinking of
trying to have a second baby. My husband is a physician who
knows the Ob/gyns and Infertility docs in the area. Through his
work and personal connections, he decided that Reproductive
Science Center would be a good place for us to start. We have
seen Dr. Willman and Dr. Hinckley and have been very happy with
them so far. We have yet to embark on any actual treatment, but
I have a few friends who had success at this clinic.
We recently switched to Blue Shield HMO. As you know the
fertility coverage is not great in California. So I completely
understand why you are trying to find an Ob/Gyn rather than a
Reproductive Endocrinologist (RE). However, speaking strictly
from a medical point of view, I would urge you to go straight
to an RE if at all possible. Though some Obs do have an
interest and experience in fertility, I don't think it can
compare with that of a specialist in this field. I have read
countless books and articles on the topic. The consensus in the
infertility community is that it's best to go straight to an RE
if you have been trying to have a baby for 12 months or more
and have been unsuccessful. The number of months goes down to 6
if you're 35 years or older.
So I guess I would answer your second question by saying that
yes, it may be possible to address ''simple'' fertility isses at
a regular office visit with an Ob.(I'm not sure there is such a
thing...) I realize I am speaking without any knowledge of your
fertility problems. Even so, if you truly do have infertility,
your very best bet would be to see an RE at least once. Hope
this helps, and best of luck to you.
Anon
I had fertility issues too and I would recommend going to see a
fertility specialst if you're serious about conceiving. If you
have a medical spending account at work, the copays for
doctor's visits (even IUI) are covered
been there
Hi-
I can't speak for certain on the fertility issues part of your
question. But I can recommend an OB that might fit your bill.
I've seen Dr. Kanwit at East Bay Physicians Medical group
(formerly known as OB/GN Fertility Specialists)for my first
pregnancy, and now ongoing for my second. I had Blue Shield
HMO with my first pregnancy (and subsequent visits) and now we
have Blue Shield PPO. Once my OB gave the thumbs up after my
first child, we spoke of fertility (1st one was unplanned), but
we didn't go too into depth, since we weren't quite ready for a
second yet. I believe she (or really any of the doctor's in
the group) could handle what you are asking for. You can
always call them and speak to their office staff, they are
friendly. Their phone number is (510) 845-8047. They are
located in Berkely on Telegraph, just above Ashby Ave.
Goodluck! I hope you find what you need! Oh, and you can
always contact me directly if you need more info.
kukana
June 2005
I'd like to hear from women who've done IUI or IVF recently at
some of the Bay Area clinics and to get feedback on their
experience. My husband and I recently tried Reproductive Science
Center in Orinda and I'm not sure how we feel about the
experience, and would like to compare to other people's experiences.
If you're reading this and have recent (2004 and after) and
relevant experience, or know someone who does, we'd really like
to get some feedback. thanks.
Re: Experience with Bay Area Fertility clinics? (June 2005)
Recommended:
Pacific Fertility Center
Reproductive Science Center
Stanford Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Center
UCSF Center for Reproductive Health (4)
May 2005
Does anyone have experience (good or bad) buying IVF medications online from
European (or other overseas) pharmacies, such as www.ivfmeds.com? The prices are
considerably cheaper than even the cheapest U.S. based online pharmacies, and
appears to be the exact same products (Gonal-F). They say they account for the
time customs takes in their estimated shipping time. Other than the additional time
shipping, does anyone know of any reason NOT to order from overseas? Thanks for
any advice.
Hi,
I bought Gonal F and Antagon from ivfmeds.com a couple of years
ago for IVF #1 and would highly recommend. It was a very easy
process, the order arrived within a few days (sent from a
London pharmacy) and I saved a ton of money - we were
completely self funding. As an aside, there's a website called
freegaragesale.com which, in its medical category, lists
private sales of IVF drugs. I had a good experience with a
seller for my 2nd (successful) IVF cycle, but it's obviously a
little risky.
Good luck!
Nov 2004
I have Blue Shield PPO and am absolutely amazed and frustrated
to find that there is not a single RE listed on my plan within
100+ mile radius! I have called my insurance provider
already...this is how I know about the 100+ mile radius.
Arrrrgghhhh.
Any of you have any experience with a local East Bay RE AND have
Blue Shield as your insurance and would be willing to share your
little secret??!
Prefer someone in the East Bay.
Many thanks,
Lauri
I highly reccomend travelling down to Stanford if you can
manage it. Incredible staff, doctors, nurses etc -- and they
take just about any insurance (from what I gather). I did IVF
down there and was able to schedule all my app'ts to avoid
traffic. Parking is easy too.
Good luck
I know this might sound nutty, but since most companies have
open enrollment in December, you should immediately change your
insurance if you can. We had really horrible coverage with Blue
Shield/Cross for infertility. We had expensive co-pays for
everything. If you are beginning this journey, you are much
better off with Kaiser or another plan that covers way more of
the testing and procedures. That said, we ended up having to
pay for our IVF out of pocket, but at least we had all the other
things that we tried paid for first. Sorry that I can't help you
find someone local.
Annie
August 2003
I've had trouble keeping early term pregnancies and was advised
to see an Endocrinologist. Does anyone have experience with
Dr.John Linfoot or with other area endocrinologists for dealing
with potential reproductive issues?
seeking answers
I went through 4 years of infertility and did a ton of
research. While you can go to any basic endocrinologist for
your basic testing (fsh, etc.), I'd recommend Dr. Zouves for
being the absolute best in the area. His email is:
http://www.goivf.com/
Also, if you're 40 or over, there is a wonderful email list
called ''fortility'' which is for women of this age trying to
conceive. I found it to contain some of the smartest, most
upbeat, well-researched people I've ever met. Go to
www.surrogacy.org for info.
good luck,
cat
Rachelle Halpern in Berkeley 843.5000 is a great
endocrinologist. I'm sure she'd be happy to talk to you about
fertility issues and whether or not she can help. Good luck!
peggy
I understand your request is in regard to reproductive issues
but I thought you might like to have any comment regarding
Linfoot's office. My husband is currently seeing Dr. Linfoot
for thyroid problems.
We recently moved to the Bay Area and had not even seen a GP
when my husband woke up recently with a very large growth on his
throat. We found a GP who immediately sent us to an ear, nose
and throat specialist and he, in turn, sent us to Dr. Linfoot.
This all happened within 5 days.
Dr. Linfoot had no appointments available but he stayed after
hours to see my husband.
I am very particular about doctors and believe in taking a
proactive role in health care. Prior to our visit with Dr.
Linfoot, I spent hours and hours on the internet comparing
information as well as talking to several doctor friends from
the Houston Medical Center in Houston. (We just moved here from
Houston.)
Dr. Linfoot was excellent. He answered our multitude of
questions. He was current on all different types of
procedures. He was patient and kind, never rushing us in any
way. I was very impressed.
We are down to a decision regarding surgery to remove the
thyroid and Dr. Linfoot is working with us to make the
decision. I highly recommend him as an endrocrinologist.
PJ
I saw John Linfoot for a thyroid problem a few years ago, and I
wasn't thrilled with the practice. While I liked him and the
other doctor I saw, I thought their follow-up was not very good
or very thorough. I got the impression that the specialty of the
practice was diabetes. I suggest you find someone who
specializes in reproductive endocrinology specifically. Not only
do you want someone who knows all the latest developments in
this area, but someone with at least an inkling of the emotional
issues involved with these problems as well. RESOLVE of Northern
California used to have a referral list of fertility
specialists, you might contact them.
Mary
January 2003
I'm not sure if this should perhaps be an advice wanted
posting. I'm looking for a fertility/pregnancy book that's
really clinical, with explanations about what's really going on
in the body. The book ''Taking Charge of Your Fertility'' is a
good start (especially regarding hormone fluctuations throughout
the menstrual cycle and how they relate to fertility), but I'd
like something more in depth, going beyond just the hormone
fluctuations, and also with more expanations about why something
occurs due to a particular hormone or process. eg: progesterone
causes the basal body temperature to increase, but why?
Basically, I'm looking for something less intense than a medical
textbook, but more informative than the standard books I've
looked at. However, I'm open to buying a textbook (say, at the
UCSF bookstore since they are a medical university) if there's
one (or two) that could provide a lot of information in a way
that I could understand, but I don't know where/how to find the
right one. I'd love to hear from anyone with suggestions.
You might check out Resolve (www.resolve.org), a national
organization that addresses issues of fertility and infertility.
They have a collection of Fact Sheets on different topics
related to infertility (and so by extension, fertility and the
reproductive system) that I have found to be excellent in both
the amount of real medical information and level of
complexity. They are just right for an intelligent lay-person.
I'm an ob/gyn nurse practitioner, and ''Taking Charge of your
Fertility'' is the book I usually recommend to patients, but if
you want real depth, the ''bible'' of the field is ''Clinical
Gynecologic Endocrinology and Infertility'' by Speroff et al. I
don't know of a book that's not a textbook that's better
than ''Taking Charge..'' Good luck! (The Speroff book is very
expensive...if you're in the Berkeley area, you're welcome to
borrow mine, just email me)
Debbie
Nov. 2003
Re: IVF
Please check out http://207.44.160.141/board/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=108
or http://207.44.160.141/board/allboards.html You
will find tons of information on IVF in California at the link
above. Several people have been have listed recommendations, or
experiences at the clinics you have mentioned. If you have
trouble with these links please let me know. Good Luck! Mary
May 2000
Resolve of Northern California is a group that helps people with fertility
problems in a number of ways. I received their helpful,
informative newsletters and joined one of their support groups during our
struggle with fertility. (I don't know if this is more than lucky coincidence,
but everyone in my support group ended up having a child or children
one way or another.) The phone number is (415) 788-6772. It's in San
Francisco, but our support group was in the East Bay and the annual
conference we went to was at Mills College. Your friend should call
them and find out what is going on in San Jose, and about other large
scale events she could attend. www.resolve.org
I would also recommend a support network for fertility Resolve. They have a web
site and have a good deal of information and terrific volunteer support. Here is the
northern California chapter web site http//www.ihr.com/resolve/nchome.html
Best of luck!!
Molly (5/00)
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