Fertility services to resume during Alert Level 3: Eastern Health

Eastern Health says it will soon begin to provide gradual and limited fertility services at a clinic in St. John's now that the province has reached Level 3 of its COVID-19 plan.

In a short statement, the health authority told CBC News on Monday afternoon that plans to restart services will be communicated with patients as procedures gradually resume.

Appointments that were deemed non-urgent were cancelled by Eastern Health, including at St. John's fertility clinic, due to the pandemic several months ago.

Hopeful parents who are waiting on fertility treatments in the province, or are in need of preparative services to allow them to attend an in vitro fertilization clinic elsewhere, have had their plans on hold for months during the pandemic.

There has been unrest among patients who saw other servicesresume, while fertility services had not. For many, time is of the essence and they have little time tospare.

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Asked Monday about fertility services, Health Minister Dr. John Haggie said "time-sensitive" procedures, such as preservation for cancer patients, have not stopped because of the pandemic.

He reiterated past comments that reopening services is a clinical decision, not a political one.

No firm timelines have been provided for when services will resume, or which procedures will take precedent over others.

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