RICHMOND, Va. – For years, Kyle Busch and his wife, Samantha, struggled to have a baby before undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) to help them conceive their son, Brexton, who was born in May 2015.
Behind the pain, praying and skepticism about God’s plan keeping them from having a baby, there was a giant $24,000 bill for the procedure – not covered by their insurance – which they were lucky enough to afford. But not everyone is so fortunate, and that’s why Samantha said fertility problems should “absolutely” be covered by insurance.
“If you break your leg, insurance covers it,” Busch said Saturday at Richmond International Raceway. “Well, my ovaries are broken.”
Knowing the challenges families face, they started the Kyle and Samantha Busch Bundle of Joy Fund, which covers the costs associated with infertility to help couples in North Carolina conceive through the same clinic that assisted them.
(Matthew O’Haren-USA TODAY Sports)
“It’s frustrating in the respect that it is so easy for many other people out there to get pregnant, but for others it’s not quite as easy,” Kyle told USA TODAY Sports in 2014 when the couple was expecting. “Fortunately, we’re able to be in the position we’re in…and have the financials to do that. And now we’d like to be able to help out with others.”
Samantha said the fund’s biannual award now has about 50 applicants – up from just five the first round – from couples who have suffered multiple miscarriages and have been trying to get pregnant for sometimes a decade.
One family’s story she was most touched by was about a husband who served in the military for nearly a decade, and when he returned from Afghanistan, he and his wife struggled to conceive and couldn’t imagine being able to afford IVF.
“At least for military and first responders, our insurance needs to take care of that,” Samantha said, admitting she doesn’t know much about politics but is actively researching the best advocacy route. “It’s definitely something that we need to look into moving forward and helping these families because even if it covered 50 percent, it would be more doable than what it is now.”
So far, Samantha said 10 babies have been born to families they’ve helped afford IVF with one more on the way. The fund will be able to help two more families this year thanks to a $30,000 donation for being a finalist in the Comcast Community Champion of the Year award – given to people in NASCAR for their work in community service.
But as a local organization, there’s only so much the Bundle of Joy Fund can do, and Samantha said she’s determined to raise more awareness and advocate for insurance coverage for infertility costs.
“It’s not just (help) financially – you’re giving them the chance to have their own child and to just hold this miracle that they’ve wanted so bad,” she said.
