Fertility treatment, insurance and law in California

Broad infertility or IVF requirement in force

Under SB 729, large-group fully insured plans covering more than 100 employees must cover the diagnosis and treatment of infertility, including IVF, for policies issued, amended or renewed on or after 1 July 2025. CalPERS plans for state employees follow from 1 July 2027. Small-group and individual-market plans are not covered by this requirement.

Private-insurance requirement: Required to be covered

Under SB 729, large-group fully insured plans covering more than 100 employees must cover the diagnosis and treatment of infertility, including IVF, for policies issued, amended or renewed on or after 1 July 2025. CalPERS plans for state employees follow from 1 July 2027. Small-group and individual-market plans are not covered by this requirement.

State requirements do not necessarily apply to every health plan. Self-funded employer plans, federal plans and certain exempt employers may follow different rules. Check your plan documents or insurer for your individual coverage.

Employer size rules: Not identified in the sources reviewed.

Religious or conscience exemptions: Religious employer exemptions exist in California insurance law for reproductive-health requirements. Ask your benefits team whether one applies to your plan.

Self-funded employer plans (ERISA): SB 729 does not reach self-funded employer plans, which are governed principally by federal ERISA rules. Many large California employers are self-funded, so check before assuming.

• •Large-group fully insured plans (more than 100 employees) are the plans covered
• •Clinical criteria follow ASRM guidance
• •Small-group and individual plans are outside SB 729
• •CalPERS state-employee plans come in from 1 July 2027

Cycle or lifetime limits: Up to three completed oocyte retrievals, with unlimited embryo transfers from those retrievals, in line with ASRM guidance.

Employer exemptions: Religious employer exemptions exist in California insurance law for reproductive-health requirements. Ask your benefits team whether one applies to your plan.

Covered in specified circumstances

A Medi-Cal infertility-treatment requirement was not identified in the sources reviewed.

Not established in the sources reviewed

No distinct public-employee fertility benefit was identified. A public-employee benefit, where one exists, is not a statewide private-insurance requirement.

No enacted law with a future effective date was identified.

No pending, failed or expired fertility bills were recorded for this jurisdiction in this review.

Gestational surrogacy: Statutory framework permitting and regulating gestational surrogacy

California Family Code §§7960–7962 set out requirements for assisted reproduction agreements with gestational carriers, including what the agreement must contain and when it must be executed. It is one of the most established statutory frameworks in the country.

Parentage: Pre-birth judgments of parentage are routine for compliant agreements, so intended parents are generally not required to adopt after birth.

Donor conception: Donor parentage is dealt with separately within California's Uniform Parentage Act provisions.

LGBTQ+ family building: California's parentage framework applies without a marriage or genetic-connection requirement for intended parents under a compliant agreement.

Under SB 729, large-group fully insured plans covering more than 100 employees must cover the diagnosis and treatment of infertility, including IVF, for policies issued, amended or renewed on or after 1 July 2025. CalPERS plans for state employees follow from 1 July 2027. Small-group and individual-market plans are not covered by this requirement.

Last reviewed by the Antega editorial team: 2026-09-08.