In January, Holly Meaux got engaged.
In February, she went to the doctor after her mother and father tested positive for Covid.
Holly thought her persistent cough and fever were the same thing.
"I just thought that I was sick, and I just wanted to get better," Holly said.
Doctors found a large mass on her lung.
"It turns out that I have stage three Hodgkin's Lymphoma."
While Holly let that sink in, she was faced with another decision, start chemo or take time to freeze her eggs.
She knew that waiting could put her life at risk, but also knew that chemo could take away her chances of ever have children with her future husband.
"To choose between having chemo right away or preserve my eggs, I'm so happy we had that time frame in between to freeze my eggs and go through that entire process," Holly said. "If I had to take chemo right away then we wouldn't have had that chance."
Holly was able to get an appointment with Dr. John Storment, director of Fertility Answers. That appointment was just the beginning, obstacles continue to be thrown her way.
"Our insurance didn't cover it," Holly said. "It was a big struggle for us to even think about how we were going to pay for it because it's not cheap, at all."
Holly's story is like so many others who face this same struggle.
It is the reason that Louisiana State Representative for District 69, Paula Davis decided to author House Bill 537. It would require health insurance coverage for infertility treatments.
"It's now something that I'm very passionate about and I believe in," Davis said. "I think we should be covering IVF treatments. We don't have to cover many treatments....but if we could cover one or two treatments without parents having to come out of pocket because it's a lot of money."
That bill changed drastically on the House floor back in May of 2022. The IVF portion of the bill was taken out and the Preservation Act was put in. It would allow the freezing of eggs and sperm of those undergoing chemo or radiation.
"The number of people that this would impact, just fertility preservation, in Louisiana would be about 2200 people a year," Davis said. "That's 2,200 people that are fighting a disease that could cause infertility. That doesn't mean that 2,200 would be eligible for fertility preservation. It's a really low number when you think about it, but how can you put a price on creating families."
This year HB 537 did not pass, the Preservation Act died in Committee.
Despite the setback, Davis said she is not giving up and pushing forward to the next legislative session.
"I'm excited to pick up this cause and champion this cause."
As for Holly, she felt defeated, she received an unexpected gift.
"I was more than blessed to have my godmother off to pay for it," Holly said as she started to cry.
"That's what a godmother is for..." I spoke.
"Oh, gosh yeah. We have so many friends and family that are supporting us. Not a lot of people can say that they have that. I didn't choose to have cancer. I've had four rounds of chemo already and that was still the hardest. Harder than any side effects from chemo."
But one that she is thankful to have had the chance to go through so that one day she and her fiancée get a chance to expand their family, when they are ready.
