Walmart adding fertility treatments to employee benefit plan

Walmart has announced it will add fertility treatments to its employee benefits package.

The major U.S. retailer said in a news release Tuesday that through its new Center of Excellence initiative, company associates and their families will have access to services from U.S.-based fertility clinic network Kindbody, which include fertility assessments and education, fertility preservation, genetic testing, in vitro fertilization and intrauterine insemination.

Walmart associates can use Kindbody’s services to access the company’s surrogacy and adoption benefits, as employees can also receive up to $20,000 in financial support for eligible surrogacy and adoption expenses.

Those benefits will also include enhanced maternity and parental leave for full-time employees, allowing new moms to receive up to four months of paid maternity leave, and adoptive and foster parents will receive up to six weeks of paid parental leave to bond with their new child, according to the news release. 

“Providing access to high-quality health care is very important to us, and we’ve heard from our associates that improved access to fertility, surrogacy and adoption support is a priority for them and their families,” Kim Lupo, senior vice president for Walmart’s Global Total Rewards, said in a statement. “Through Kindbody, Walmart associates in every corner of the country will have access to a variety of services to aid in their family-planning journey.”

The announcement comes after the company announced plans last month to expand its abortion coverage for employees following the Supreme Court’s June decision striking down Roe v. Wade, which had established a constitutional right to abortion.

“We’re incredibly honored to become a Walmart Center of Excellence and provide high-quality care to Walmart associates, furthering our mission to make fertility and family-building care affordable and accessible for all,” Kindbody founder and Chairwoman Gina Bartasi said in a statement. “Our partnership with Walmart signals that fertility benefits have joined medical, dental, and vision as standard workplace benefits for leading employers.”