Family-Forming Benefits
What to Know
To aid you on your fertility health or family-forming journey, UC offers residents and fellows inclusive fertility and family-forming benefits of up to a lifetime maximum of $30,000 per resident or fellow (not per member); however, the benefit can be used by any eligible family member. The family member does not have to be covered on the UC Residents and Fellows Health Plan. To be eligible, you must already be enrolled in the UC Residents and Fellows Health Plan and working 20 or more hours per week. Learn more about Carrot and get started today.
About Carrot
We’ve partnered with Carrot to bring you comprehensive, inclusive and accessible fertility health care and family-forming benefits to support your unique journey.
Get personalized step-by-step guidance, educational resources, and at-home support for egg/sperm/embryo preservation, in vitro fertilization (IVF), adoption, menopause, low testosterone (low T), and pregnancy.
Covered Treatments and Services
You can receive up to a $30,000 lifetime maximum for eligible expenses. Some services may need to be recommended and supervised by an eligible health care professional before they can be reimbursed. Benefits paid under the program may be treated as taxable wages for purposes of income and employment tax withholding. Read the fine print to learn more.
Testing and Diagnostics
- Initial fertility consultation
- Transvaginal ultrasound baseline
- Semen analysis
- Lab tests and diagnostic procedures
- Genetic carrier screening
Treatments
- In vitro fertilization (IVF)
- Intrauterine insemination (IUI)
- Donor sperm acquisition
- Egg and sperm storage
- Shipping and transport of materials
Fertility Preservation
- Egg retrieval
- Egg, sperm and embryo freezing
Adoption and Gestational Surrogacy
- Adoption-related legal services or agency services
- Gestational surrogacy-related legal or agency services
For more information, read the plan summaries for fertility, adoption and gestational surrogacy.
Save on Prescriptions
Once a Carrot member, you have access to Carrot Rx, a specialty pharmacy for your fertility medications, vitamins and supplements.
Get competitive prices, convenient delivery and 24/7 personalized support to help manage your medications. Most medications are available to be shipped the same day they are ordered or the very next day.
Access your Carrot Rx card online through your Carrot account.
Pregnancy Support
Access additional pregnancy support with online prenatal yoga and meditation classes and unlimited virtual visits with OB-GYNs, lactation consultants, nutritionists, midwives, doulas and emotional well-being experts.
Home Fertility Tracking
Track your ovulation, complete sperm analyses, and take female fertility and female wellness tests from the comfort of your own home.
Get Started With Carrot
You and your spouse or domestic partner can access Carrot fertility benefits beginning March 1, 2023.
To get started, visit get-carrot.com/signup to create your account. Register using your UC resident or fellow email address as entered in PlanSource, so Carrot can confirm you are a UC resident or fellow. You can change your email address after you register.
Paying for Services
Once registered with Carrot, you can request a Carrot Card — a prepaid card that’s directly funded by UC. The Carrot Card ensures you are not responsible for any out-of-pocket costs when you use it to pay for eligible expenses, up to the $30,000 lifetime maximum. Each time you use your card, you’ll receive an email requesting a receipt for verification of the expense. Just submit your itemized statement!
The Carrot Card will be mailed to you within 1–2 weeks of your request. Make sure to activate your card before using it for the first time. Once you start using the card, you can track your spending and view your balance online in your Carrot account.
The Fine Print
Adoption
UC benefits you receive may be excluded from your federal taxable income.
- You may claim both a tax exclusion and a tax credit if you adopt a child.
- You may not claim both an exclusion and a credit for the same expense.
- You may not claim a tax credit for a reimbursed expense that is excludable from your federal taxable income.
See the adoption guide for more details.
This should not be construed as tax advice. You are advised to consult with a tax and/or legal advisor before accessing benefits through the UC Adoption Assistance Plan.
