Aetna customers who were denied fertility coverage because of their sexual orientation or family structure may finally see some relief. A class action lawsuit over the insurer's treatment of same-sex couples has reached a key milestone, allowing eligible LGBTQ+ Californians to seek compensation for costly fertility treatments.
Last year, Aetna agreed to change its fertility coverage policies after a lawsuit argued that the insurer unfairly denied benefits to same-sex couples. Under Aetna's former rules, policyholders were required to prove infertility by engaging in six to 12 months of unprotected heterosexual intercourse. Same-sex couples and single women without male partners had to undergo multiple failed rounds of artificial insemination before qualifying for coverage, often at their own expense.
The lawsuit, Berton v. Aetna, was filed in April 2023 by Mara Berton, a California resident who said she and her wife were forced to pay tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket to conceive a child. The plaintiffs argued that Aetna's policy treated LGBTQ+ members differently and effectively denied them equal access to fertility benefits.
In January 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California preliminarily approved a settlement that makes Aetna's policy change legally enforceable nationwide. This means Aetna is now required to provide equitable access to fertility treatments, including artificial insemination and in vitro fertilization, for LGBTQ+ policyholders in the same way it does for heterosexual couples.
The settlement also opens the door for financial compensation. LGBTQ+ California residents who were denied coverage for artificial insemination under Aetna's California commercial or student insurance plans may now file claims for reimbursement. According to the settlement administrators, most eligible class members who submit a qualifying claim can receive approximately $11,000.
The deadline to file is June 29, 2026. The settlement includes at least $2 million in damages for qualifying California-based class members.
It remains to be seen, but this case has the potential to set a new precedent for how other insurers approach fertility coverage moving forward. If it does, starting a family might suddenly be an option for many couples who simply haven't been able to afford it.
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