Armenian government triples funding for reproductive health programs
YEREVAN, March 22. /ARKA/. In a bid to contain what experts call a 'demographic catastrophe' the government of Armenia has tripled the funding for reproductive health programs, Nune Pashayan, the acting head of a health ministry department in charge of maternal healthcare, told a news conference on Monday.
According to Pashayan, the current fertility rate in Armenia is 1.6, while for simple reproduction it should be 2.1. Compared to 1990, the birth rate has decreased by almost 1.8 times, and if the level of infertility, which, according to the latest data, is 14.9% for women and 9.5% for men is added, it appears that the nation is facing a serious demographic challenge.
Prompted by this trend, the government has designed a fertility boosting program that comprises several components - determining the causes of infertility and its treatment and artificial insemination.
The program's beneficiaries are military personnel, members of their families and persons equated to them, beneficiaries of the social benefit system, persons with disabilities and residents of border communities, whose number ha surged from 34 to 184 as a result of the recent war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
According to Pashayan, the last changes to the list of beneficiaries were made on February 25, 2021, to include also relatives of servicemen and volunteers who died during the war.
The beneficiaries of the program can contact one of five medical centers that use reproductive assisted technologies. After undergoing free diagnostics and treatment, and if necessary surgical intervention, they get the possibility of a free in vitro fertilization. The second attempt is provided with a 50% discount. Also 6 attempts of artificial insemination are provided free of charge.
“In total, 62 babies have already been born within the framework of the program, but there are still pregnant women, Pashayan said.
According to the founder of the Fertility Center Eduard Hambardzumya, given the high level of infertility in Armenia (14.9% among women), WHO estimates such countries as facing a demographic crisis.
According to him, one problem is a high rate of infertility and the second problem is a low fertility index, as a result of which the population of the country can be halved in 70 years.
“As a result, at the end of the 21st century there may be 1.5 million fewer of us, which is a“ creeping genocide, ” Hambardzumyan said.
He also noted that the average age of pregnancy and fertility in Armenia is 23-24 years, down from 31-32 in Europe.
The main causes of infertility in Armenia are polycystic diseases, associated complications and, to some extent, infectious diseases and hormonal disorders.
“About 30% of complications associated with infertility are the result of infectious diseases and if diagnosed in a timely manner and treated the number of problems would be fewer,' he said. -0-
