A CHARITY which supports women experiencing fertility problems has slammed Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group’s decision to reduce IVF funding.

The Fertility Network UK has said the announcement, which will see the number of cycles of NHS-funded IVF treatment for women aged under 40 reduced from three to one, is unfair.

The change comes into force on October 28. Other changes include the time spent trying to conceive, with the new minimum being three years for women aged 35-40.

The new policy also stipulates that couples must have been in a stable relationship for at least two years.

The chief executive of the Fertility Network UK, Susan Seenan, said: “Private treatment is expensive and what is unfair is that it shouldn’t depend on where you live to get IVF treatment and that is the biggest single issue.

“We have a National Health Service and national guidelines that recommend that three full cycles should be given to women and that is what people should get.

“It shouldn’t depend on your postcode.

“We aren’t just disappointed but we are angry fertility treatment is seen as an option for cutting.

“The same couple living in a different part of the country will get three rounds of treatment while people in Wiltshire will only get one.

“It is just wrong and it is very unfair and it is singling out people who suffer with fertility problems.

“There is a lot of treatment we give on the NHS that isn’t 100 per cent effective and we do not say that because it may only be 60 or 70 per cent effective we won’t bother.”

The CCG has said that its finite resources to fund a range of health services and treatments is often consumed by expensive IVF treatment which, it says, can often be unsuccessful.

And they hope to balance funding the treatment while providing other services across the county.

Tracey Cox, the interim accountable officer for Wiltshire CCG, said: “Up and down the land CCGs are being forced to make very difficult decisions.

“I think all of us on the Governing Body feel a level of discomfort and it’s with a heavy heart that we have to progress this policy decision.

“What the agreement does ensure is a consistency of policy and fairness about access to services.”

A number of clinical commissioning groups across the country are considering making cuts to IVF funding, potentially removing the procedure on the NHS in some areas.