22yo student in tears over $12k medical bill only Aussie women cop

A young Australian left in tears at the sheer cost of a necessary treatment only women need has exposed a “broken” Aussie system.

A young Australian woman was left in floods of tears after discovering a medical treatment she needs will cost “every last dollar she has to her name”.

Amelia Bonnici, 22, is currently in the third year of her law degree and is working part-time at a cafe and a pub.

But after recently being diagnosed with endometriosis and adenomyosis, two chronic and often debilitating conditions involving endometrial-like tissue growing in the wrong area of the body, the NSW woman decided to find out whether it was impacting her fertility.

After undergoing a blood test that measures the level of AMH, a hormone produced by the small follicles in a woman’s ovaries, to assess her ovarian reserve and potentially indicate fertility potential, Millie was given “devastating” news.

“The first sign I had endo was actually at about age 10, before I had my first period, as I suffered extreme pain the first time I ovulated,” she told news.com.au.

“I was eventually diagnosed with endo and adeno in November 2023, and that came after years of suffering with unexplained pain, breakthrough bleeding, non-response to birth control and even pain during intercourse, all of the common symptoms and side-effects.

“So I decided to get my AMH tested and it came back very, very low, in the bottom two percentile for my age.

“Doctors had actually told me, ‘you’re young, you should be fine’ but I pushed for it, and I’m so glad I did because otherwise it might have been too late to do anything about it.”

Amelia Bonnici, 22, was quoted $12,000 for one round of egg freezing, a procedure she needs due to her medical conditions. Picture: Supplied

The NSW student was diagnosed with endometriosis and adenomyosis in December 2023. Picture: Supplied

While medical advancements in the fertility industry have meant there are lots of options available for anyone struggling to get pregnant or wanting to preserve their fertility, data shows these treatments can be expensive.

In Australia, elective egg freezing can cost anywhere from $5000 to $15,000 per cycle, with ongoing storage fees of around $500-$600 per year, Medicare typically doesn’t cover these costs. Rebates are available for egg freezing if it’s deemed medically necessary, for example, if a woman requires chemotherapy that could affect her fertility.

For Millie, she would be required to cover the upfront costs, and claim the partial rebate back if she was deemed eligible after assessment.

After being quoted $12,000 by one fertility clinic, the young student said she “burst into tears”, stating that in order to pay for the treatment she would have to spend her “entire life savings”.

“I felt very overwhelmed and anxious by the news, it felt like I was trying to climb an uphill battle because I had initially been reassured by the fact there were different options available, but I had no idea it was so expensive,” she said.

After facing spending her ‘entire life savings’ on treatment, she took to the internet in tears. Picture: Supplied

It was this discovery that prompted Millie to share an emotional video in which she questioned how women were meant to afford these essential treatments and procedures.

“I just got off the phone to an IVF clinic because my AMH is absurdly low for my age, and it’s going to be $12,000, that’s almost every dollar that I have to my name,” she explained through tears on TikTok.

“But the fear that I will never become a mother or have a family that I can love, especially coming from a broken household, just honestly consumes me.

“It’s something that has played on my mind every single day.”

Millie concluded by captioning the video: “Feeling so alone, isolated, scared and just overwhelmed by this whole process. 12k is so much money, especially being 22 and in this economy.”

The video was quickly flooded with message of support, as countless other Australians shared their own fertility stories, claiming the system feels “broken” and discriminatory towards women.

“I’m in the same boat, I’m now 25 with stage 3/4 endo and we have been trying to have a baby naturally for 6 months and we’re looking into IVF because I likely won’t be able to conceive,” one said.

“We did IVF and it was so overwhelming, I got a $5k credit card to pay part of the $9k out of pocket costs. We literally had $80 left in our account, that was every penny we had and it was scary,” another shared.

As one claimed: “Our health system is so broken I’m so sorry. I need shoulder surgery and my gap was gonna be a minimum of $7k.”

Adora Fertility CEO, Vanessa Ferguson, said the cost of fertility treatment in Australia can be ‘crippling’. Picture: Supplied

New data recently revealed that around one in 18 babies born in Australia are conceived using fertility treatments, forcing some hopeful parents to pay out hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to have a child due to multiple cycles needed.

The findings, released by Adora Fertility – a bulk-billing fertility service with clinics in NSW, VIC, WA and QLD – in November, showed some desperate couples have remortgaged their homes in their pursuit of having a child.

“Facing infertility is difficult enough without having to worry about how to afford treatment, and with the current cost-of-living pressures, the financial repercussions can be crippling,” Adora Fertility CEO, Vanessa Ferguson, told news.com.au.

“Fertility treatment is a complex process that involves highly trained specialists, advanced medical technologies and ongoing patient care.

“IVF laboratories also require highly specialised equipment and culture media to culture and store eggs, sperm and embryos.”

Ms Ferguson said the expertise often leads to costs varying widely depending on the provider but said there are “low cost” options available, but many Australians are “unaware” as the Australian assisted reproductive technologies (ART) industry is primarily private.

“We are helping an increasing number of patients who have either spent significant amounts of money on IVF with other providers and unfortunately have not fallen pregnant or have found other private fertility providers to be out of reach financially,” Ms Ferguson explained.

“Paying more for fertility treatment doesn’t mean you have a greater chance of having a baby.”

Bulk-billing fertility clinics are able to offer “significantly lower” fees by charging the majority of Medicare eligible expenses associated with ART back to the health insurance scheme.

Helpful commenters were able to share the little-known information with Millie, but not before she’d gone through the emotional ringer.

“When I was first told it was going to cost me $12,000, I just thought, ‘are you kidding me?’” she told news.com.au.

“I thought I was never going to be able to do all the normal things that other people my age are doing, like buying a house or getting a car, and I genuinely considered eating noodles for the rest of my life.”

Millie said she was ‘overwhelmed’ at facing such a huge emotional and financial decision at such a young age. Picture: Supplied

She said she was also struck by “how unfair” the situation was, noting it is a financial and emotional decision that mostly only women face.

“It felt like spending that money was my only option, and at such a young age, it felt extremely daunting to be making such a huge decision.”

The extreme cost of accessing many fertility services has been even more complicated for single women and same-sex couples who until recently were not eligible for a Medicare rebate, often worth thousands of dollars.

That meant that solo women, described as “socially infertile”, and LGBTIQ+ couples faced full out-of-pocket cost for their first IVF cycle as infertility had been defined as people who couldn’t conceive after a year of regular, unprotected sex.

After years of campaigning from fertility groups, this has just been redefined by the federal health department.

The new definition of infertility is now “the inability to achieve a successful pregnancy based on a patient’s medical, sexual, and reproductive history, age, physical findings, diagnostic testing, or any combinations of these factors”.

Originally published as 22yo student in tears over $12k medical bill only Aussie women cop