Preconception Genetic Testing: Medicare Rebates Introduced
PGT is now eligible for a Medicare rebate under certain circumstances
What is PGT?
PGT involves the biopsy of embryos at the blastocyst stage. Embryos are frozen while DNA extracted from biopsies cells are analysed for genetic errors.
When is PGT Medicare eligible?
PGT is now eligible for a Medicare rebate in the following circumstances:
Where a parent or parents have a known genetic mutation in a gene, that can result in a child at risk of serious genetic illness. This kind of testing is known as PGT-M, referring to testing for Monogenic diseases.
Where a parent carries a structural rearrangement of a chromosome (translocation, deletion or inversion) meaning embryos created with their egg or sperm are at high risk of failing to implant or causing a miscarriage or the conception of a child with serious medical concerns. This kind of testing is known as PGT-R, referring to testing for chromosomal Rearrangements.
For medical sex selection: Where a baby of a particular sex is at higher risk of having a problem. An example is female sex selection to reduce the risk of severe autism (a polygenic trait, influenced by sex).
When is PGT NOT eligible for Medicare benefits?
Some choose to use PGT electively to check for random chromosomal aneuploidy (age related DNA imbalances, not inherited from parents, occurring randomly in embryos, becoming much more common, particularly with advancing parental age).
This kind of PGT is known as PGT-A, referring to chromosomal Aneuploidy.
PGT-A can advance the time to pregnancy and reduce risk of miscarriages, particularly for women aged over 37 years.
An alternative to PGT-A is sequential transfer of untested embryos created in IVF, with the same number of babies expected to result from a batch of embryos. PGT-A can be used electively to help couples achieve pregnancy faster, sometimes avoiding traumas of miscarriages and disappointment related to failed embryo transfer IVF cycles along the pathway of an IVF journey to parenthood.
This kind of testing is not eligible for Medicare funding.
Written by Dr Raelia Lew
RANZCOG Board Certified CREI Fertility specialist, Gynaecologist and the Director of Women’s Health Melbourne.
Co-host of the Knocked Up Podcast, Co-founder of Lovers intimate wellness solutions. Raelia has a PhD in Preconception Health Promotion and Genetic Screening. Raelia is a leading Australian expert in IVF and egg freezing, pioneering a bespoke model of care.