Illinois Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner signed a bill Aug. 27, requiring health insurance companies in the state to cover egg, sperm and embryo preservation for patients with cancer and other diseases, according to Chicago Tribune.
The law, which will take effect Jan. 1, ensures patients who undergo treatments that potentially leave them sterile can seek coverage for the cost of fertility preservation.
Freezing sperm costs several hundred dollars. Preserving eggs and embryos can cost more than $10,000.
About 5,800 Illinois residents ages 14 to 45 are diagnosed with cancer every year.
"I think this is going to be a game-changer for men and women in Illinois who face life saving but fertility-threatening cancer treatments," Teresa Woodruff, PhD, director of the Oncofertility Consortium at Evanston, Ill.-based Northwestern University, told Chicago Tribune.