NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Dozens of Middle Tennessee women trying to get pregnant no longer have a fertility clinic to go to.
The Center for Reproductive Health in Nashville abruptly shut down at the end of last week.
Does this affect you? I want to hear from you. Reach out to hannah.mcdonald@newschannel5.com
On Thursday, the staff received a letter reading in part "Unforeseen circumstances have led to a financial deficit.. Regrettably, you will not receive your paychecks tomorrow."
Sydney Price had an appointment on Friday, where she was told by a receptionist the clinic was "bankrupt."
"I trusted them with my family I trusted them with my mental health because that's huge when you're going through this," said Sydney Price.
Price and her husband Austin McDowell can't wait to become parents again. They have two daughters and as a result of IVF, they have three female embryos too.
For the past two years, the couple's driven 45 miles from Clarksville to the Center For Reproductive Health for fertility treatments.
"With shots and hormones and schedules and driving — it's been a handful," said Austin McDowell.
The couple has paid more than $37,000 out-of-pocket to the clinic run by Dr. Jaime Vasquez. The fertility specialist is well known. He's seen thousands of women since opening his clinic in 1995. He's never faced major disciplinary action.
"I've really been blindsided and I really hope he understands how that has made me feel," Price said.
Because I knew the couple was planning to have an embryo transfer at the end of April, I tracked down the number for an embryologist who works at the clinic. She wanted to reassure patients that all specimens are still being taken care of around the clock.
Still, Price doesn't know if her transfer will happen.
"I'm having to feel grief almost. I'm grieving the plans that I had made. I am grieving the life that I thought I was going to have this summer," Price said.
Late Monday afternoon, Dr. Vasquez returned my call. He said he is consulting a healthcare attorney and will talk to NewsChannel 5 after that.
Carrie recommends:
Growing your family, no matter the journey to get there, is an emotional one. My heart aches for these families who trusted a Nashville fertility clinic with their dreams and finances. Hannah McDonald's relentlessness to find answers is journalism at its best and hopefully a new avenue of hope for the patients caught up in this mess.
-Carrie Sharp
