The government has announced it will be investing €6 million to slash the waiting lists of couples waiting for IVF treatment by using the services of a private clinic.

The money, it later emerged, will be invested over a six-month period. During this time, the government will expand the current services offered at Mater Dei Hospital’s assisted reproductive therapy (ART) clinic.

The timeline is uncertain. It depends on the awarding of a tender for new, improved equipment to replace the current one that is a decade old. Over the past two years, the tender was blocked – twice – by losing bidders.

Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela said he was determined to set the ball rolling. He will listen to what ART clinicians want and take the matter straight to the Department of Contracts.

While we have not heard officially from these clinicians, the Medical Association of Malta complained about the government’s lack of transparency.

In a judicial protest, the MAM said the announcement to outsource IVF went against an agreement in which the government promised it would carry out “meaningful” consultation with the association and obtain its consent prior to forging ahead with any planned privatisation or outsourcing of any services that are offered as part of the national health service. 

The minister replied saying the outsourcing was temporary and part of a plan to improve and expand Mater Dei’s services. Why this was not specified before – when it was announced by the prime minister two weeks ago and, later, by Abela – is not clear.

All they said was that there would be an investment to slash the waiting list of some 650 people. While they did not mention names, the only private clinic in Malta licensed to offer this is Hope Fertility and IVF Malta. 

The recent annual report of the Embryo Protection Authority offered some context to the ART landscape in Malta.

In the 10 years since records began, there have been 601 babies born through fertility procedures. The number of babies born in a single year through assisted reproduction therapy in Malta’s fertility clinics reached a record high of 125 in 2023.

While this was positive, the percentage of live births stood at 26.88%, a marginal increase of 0.24% over 2022.

The report also showed that, in 2023, 601 procedures (that include collection of sperm and oocytes and implantation) were performed: 404 at Mater Dei and 197 at Hope.

The overall pregnancy rate for Mater Dei was of 23.9% whilst that of Hope was of 50.8%. No explanation was offered for this massive gap.

When looking at these figures, one must keep in mind the processes used at different clinics.

Mater Dei is known to have a process that tries to reduce the need for invasive IVF for younger and healthier women who could get pregnant with other procedures.

The requests for ART are on the increase. Anything that slashes waiting lists – especially in cases where time is so precious – is good news.

But the question has to be asked: whose patients will they be during the six-month outsourcing? Of Mater Dei? Of Hope? Of both?

Also, what was the cause of Mater Dei’s waiting lists in the first place? Would this be addressed with an expanded clinic?

One would hope so. After the hefty investment – that would include the €6 million, the cost of the equipment and infrastructural works and more salaries to man the enlarged clinic – time will still remain of the essence for hopeful people wishing to become parents.