Healthcare startup Carrot raises $3.6 million to further develop IVF and eff-fertilization processes

Carrot, an egg fertility startup, has raised $3.6 million capital in seed money to offer fertility care like egg-freezing and in vitro fertilization (IVF) as a workplace benefit, and make the technology more affordable to the working class. The startup helps company heads of HR to customize the benefits they are willing to offer employees through a direct reimbursement model. In totality, employees have a certain amount allotted to spend on fertility treatments such as egg-freezing, IVF, intrauterine insemination (IUI) or something else with a doctor and facility of their choosing. The company then reimburses the employee for those out-of-pocket expenses.

Katie Evans-Reber, HR head of Gusto, also supported the idea and said that “In recruiting conversations, we increasingly get questions about whether we have fertility benefits, whether for egg freezing or IVF for LGBTQ individuals and couple. We know this is important to more and more employees we are trying to hire, including women – but not only them. Offering this benefit also reflects our values as a company. Our culture is one of close family ties”. Some employers who offer these services through insurance often require there to be a diagnosis of infertility before treatment begins and often don’t cover critical services like genetic testing of the eggs or embryos before implantation. Carrot’s offering removes the need for a medical diagnosis and instead lets employees choose what services they need and who they want to go to for them.