[Exclusive] Government Deeply Concerned About Low Birthrate, Moves to Support Egg Freezing

Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Health and Welfare, and Senior Officials
Reviewing for Next Year's Budget Inclusion
Frozen Egg Procedure Costs Exceed 3 Million Won
Significant Funding Expected to be Allocated

The government, deeply concerned about low birth rates, is considering a plan to support the costs of egg freezing. This is based on the judgment that reducing the risk of infertility for those willing to conceive and give birth is crucial to solving the low birth rate problem. However, since significant funding is expected to be required and the pregnancy success rate from frozen eggs may be lower than anticipated, there are also opinions that cost support should be minimized.

On the 7th, according to related ministries including the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and the Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy, the government has begun reviewing the inclusion of such measures in next year’s budget to address low birth rates. The specific scope of support is still under discussion. A government official explained, “Details such as whether to support egg freezing itself or also the storage after freezing are currently under discussion.”

Egg freezing procedures involve collecting and storing healthy eggs in advance to be used later for actual pregnancy through assisted reproductive technology. The purpose is to freeze eggs so that pregnancy can be attempted at a desired time, thereby increasing the chances of success. The procedure consists of ▲ ultrasound and hormone tests to confirm egg retrieval feasibility ▲ ovarian stimulation to retrieve 10 to 20 eggs ▲ egg retrieval ▲ freezing and preservation of mature eggs. Some local governments, such as Seoul City, offer partial financial support for egg freezing costs to applicants, but the central government has never provided such support. Since April, the Ministry of Health and Welfare has partially subsidized the costs only when frozen eggs are actually used for pregnancy to preserve fertility.

The reason the government is considering supporting egg freezing costs is that, given the severity of the low birth rate, it is necessary to eliminate as many obstacles to pregnancy and childbirth as possible. According to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, the number of patients undergoing infertility and assisted reproductive procedures increased from 221,272 in 2017 to 252,298 in 2021. This reflects the intensifying trend of late marriage and advanced maternal age over the past decade.

The government believes that to raise the birth rate even slightly, financial support is needed to prevent individuals willing to conceive from facing obstacles such as aging that hinder pregnancy and childbirth. Egg freezing procedures, which are non-reimbursable at infertility specialty hospitals, are estimated to cost around 3 to 4 million KRW on average. Since this is a considerable expense, even partial government support could help prevent individuals with the desire to give birth from facing difficulties.

However, there are also opinions within the government that the scope of cost support should be minimized. Since the pregnancy success rate using frozen eggs may not be as high as expected, the effectiveness of large-scale funding may be limited. It is suggested that support for freezing costs should first be considered only for a very small number of people at risk of permanently losing fertility due to unforeseen accidents or other reasons. Another government official stated, “Frozen eggs cannot be regarded as a guaranteed means of pregnancy, and actual usage rates are also low. Given the expected large-scale funding, support should be limited to those who truly need it.”