I attended a baby shower on Saturday. It was my first baby shower in about 20 years. Most of my friends are well past the age of creating babies – and not quite old enough to have children who are bearing young yet.

So, the rare pink invitation with an umbrella made it into my mail box – and off I went! The party was held at a restaurant in NYC – it was a beautiful high tea. The owner of the restaurant in these slow times were happy to see us. Pink and white balloons filled the room – and bags on top of bags filled with gift wrapped presents threatened to collapse the floor with the sheer weight and volume of the gifts.

I kept thinking about how this one little birth was stimulating the economy.  This one baby created jobs for people who made baby tubs, high chairs, clothing, toys, books, rubber duckies, restaurants, balloons, gift wrapping, boxes, plane tickets, maternity clothes, health care workers too numerous to list, and the people that make pink pencils that say “it’s a girl”. The list is really quite extraordinary and only gets bigger as the child grows…from braces to skate boards. 

Helping infertile couples get insurance coverage for infertility treatment never made more sense. The creation of one life would not only give the most incredible joy to the potential Mom and Dad – but would stimulate jobs and spending. I always knew this – but some how seeing it all play out at that baby shower on Saturday really brought home the economic stimulus opportunity in each birth.

I don’t run an advocacy organization anymore. But I can’t stop being a fertility advocate. My stomach is burning with this – this is the time to get some kind of relief passed for infertile Americans. Whether it is an endowment from the govenment to directly give dollars for fertility treatment as they do in countries such as Japan – or the passage finally of a national fertility mandate.

The time is now. Anyone want to help launch a campaign?