How FLORA is creating the first personally owned fertility insurance product for the modern workforce

‍

Infertility is one of the most common — and costly — medical experiences families face, yet it remains one of the least accessible areas of coverage in employer benefits. For brokers and employers trying to respond to rising employee expectations without blowing up benefits budgets, the gap has been difficult to close.

‍

FLORA exists to change that equation.

‍

FLORA is the first proactive, personally owned fertility insurance product on the market globally. Designed as a true insurance policy rather than a traditional group benefit, FLORA gives individuals extensive fertility coverage (up to age 45) that follows them from job to job, while giving brokers and employers a stable, predictable way to expand reproductive health benefits without taking on additional financial risk.

‍

With FLORA joining BrokerTech Ventures’ 2026 cohort, the company is bringing a fundamentally new model to brokers who are looking for differentiated, high-impact solutions for mid-market and growing employers.

‍

A Financial Crisis Disguised as a Medical One

Infertility impacts one in six people across their lifetime, yet 60–80% still pay for care almost entirely out of pocket. Treatments like IVF can add up to $50,000 or more, pushing families into difficult financial tradeoffs at a moment that is already emotionally and physically exhausting.

‍

“For too long, fertility has been treated as a niche benefit,” says Laura McDonald, co-founder of FLORA. “But this isn’t niche. It’s a widespread financial crisis, and insurance has the power to make fertility care accessible and affordable.”

‍

McDonald and co-founder, Dr. Christy Lane, both came to the problem with deep insurance experience and personal motivation. Lane had built data-driven fertility journeys for health partners and gone through IVF herself. McDonald had spent her career distributing new products in fintech and insurance while watching a close family member struggle through fertility treatment.

‍

A mutual introduction through a reinsurer sparked the idea to tackle infertility at its root by combining capital, community, and risk-sharing through a new insurance model. “We decided to build what didn’t exist,” Lane says. “A proactive, portable, individually owned fertility insurance product — properly underwritten and reinsured.”

‍

What FLORA Does and Why it’s Different

At its core, FLORA offers a personally owned fertility insurance policy with $50,000 in lifetime coverage — double the industry norm — at premiums that average around $40 per month. Coverage includes diagnostics, medications, IUI, IVF, and related fertility treatments.

‍

Unlike traditional fertility benefits, FLORA policies are:

• Individually underwritten
• Personally owned by the employee
• Fully portable across jobs
• Backed by A-rated global reinsurers
• Free of in-network restrictions

‍

Most existing fertility offerings operate more like TPAs than insurance. They rely on large-group participation, impose restrictive coverage caps, charge PEPM and utilization fees, and leave employers exposed if usage spikes unexpectedly. FLORA flips that model entirely.

‍

“Existing fertility group models created demand, but they were built for Fortune 500 employers,” McDonald explains. “They’re out of reach for most SMBs and mid-market companies, and when utilization increases, employers absorb the risk. With FLORA, the risk sits with us, not the employer.”

‍

Because each policy attaches directly to the individual, employers are never on the hook for future claims. There are no participation minimums, no open enrollment restrictions, and no required payroll or HR integrations. For brokers, that structure changes the conversation.

‍

Why This Matters for Brokers

FLORA gives brokers a net-new category to take to market that responds directly to what employees are already asking for.

‍

Eighty-eight percent of Gen Z would move jobs to access fertility benefits. Seventy-two percent report fertility anxiety as early as age 23. Yet many of the employers brokers serve simply cannot absorb the volatility or administrative burden of traditional fertility programs.

‍

FLORA enables brokers to:

• Offer meaningful fertility coverage to employers previously priced out
• Present a voluntary or employer-subsidized option with stable costs
• Layer coverage on top of existing group fertility benefits
• Eliminate employer risk tied to utilization spikes
• Deliver a highly valued benefit without adding HR complexity

‍

Employers choose whether to co-pay premiums or make coverage fully voluntary. FLORA handles underwriting, billing, and claims end-to-end.

‍

“That simplicity is incredibly important,” Lane says. “We’re removing administrative friction while expanding access to real coverage.”

‍

For brokers focused on retention, attraction, and differentiation, FLORA becomes both a recruitment tool for employers and a trust-building conversation starter with employees navigating family planning decisions.

‍

Built for Digital Distribution

FLORA’s technology stack was designed for digital-first distribution from day one. Most applicants experience straight-through processing, moving from application to bound policy with no human intervention. Dedicated medical underwriters step in only when cases are more complex.

‍

Lane’s background in data science and clinical research underpins FLORA’s proprietary underwriting model built on decades of fertility data and insights from more than two million women. “Legacy carriers were never built to price fertility risk correctly,” Lane says. “That’s where our data science and clinical understanding create a real moat.”

‍

This underwriting rigor, paired with full reinsurance backing, allows FLORA to confidently offer higher lifetime coverage limits while maintaining long-term sustainability.

‍

A Timely Solution in a Shifting Market

FLORA is entering the market at a moment when employers and policymakers alike are rethinking how fertility benefits should be structured.

‍

Federal guidance issued in late 2025 and expanded in May 2026 explicitly encouraged fertility benefits offered outside of traditional group health plans — an approach FLORA believes it is uniquely positioned to fulfill. “We believe timing matters,” McDonald says. “The market, the workforce, and policy signals are finally aligned for this kind of product.”

‍

Since inception, FLORA has raised approximately $7 million in early-stage funding, led by ManchesterStory and supported by a deep bench of insurtech, healthcare, and operator-focused investors. The company is now available for nationwide distribution across the U.S.

‍

Why FLORA Joined BrokerTech Ventures

For FLORA, distribution isn’t a secondary concern — it’s central to the model.

‍

“Brokers are the trusted intermediaries,” McDonald says. “They’re the ones helping employers navigate benefits decisions in real time.”

‍

FLORA joined BrokerTech Ventures to accelerate education and adoption in a market that has never seen a product quite like this before. “BTV gives us a room full of brokers whose job is to identify differentiated products,” McDonald adds. “Being part of this community opens doors exponentially.”

‍

Looking Ahead

FLORA’s next milestone is full national distribution through brokers, employers, and channel partners, establishing personally owned fertility insurance as a permanent category in the benefits ecosystem. For brokers, FLORA represents an opportunity to lead that shift: delivering a benefit employees urgently want, structured in a way employers can finally support.

‍

As Lane puts it, “This is about giving people protection in one of the most defining moments of their lives without tying it to a single job or employer. Once you see it that way, it’s hard to imagine doing it any other way.”

‍

For inquiries or collaboration opportunities, contact laura@heyflora.com or christy@heyflora.com. 

‍