TAIPEI: The number of Taiwanese women over the age of 50 seeking assisted reproduction treatment saw a significant increase of 45 percent in 2022, as reported by the Health Promotion Administration (HPA) on Tuesday. The report highlighted an overall rise in the number of married women opting for assisted reproduction, totaling 58,476 in 2022, an increase of 8,824 from the previous year.

According to Focus Taiwan, the report detailed that 36.1 percent of these women were aged 35-39, 33.3 percent were 40-44, and 19.9 percent were 30-34. Although only 355 women were over 50, this represented a substantial rise from the previous year. Since 1998, when the median age for married women receiving such treatments was 32, it has ascended to 38 by 2022. The number of individuals undergoing treatment has grown from about 6,500 in 2001 to 58,476 in 2022, marking an eightfold increase.

The report also noted that assisted reproduction led to the birth of 11,549 babies in 2022, 1,775 more than the previous year. Statistics from 2022 indicated a correlation between pregnancy and live birth rates and the age of women receiving treatment. For women under 35, pregnancy rates with fresh and frozen embryos were 38.6 percent and 56.3 percent, respectively. However, for women over 40, these rates decreased to 13.5 percent and 27.7 percent.

Tsai Way-yi, deputy division director of HPA's Maternal and Child Health Division, mentioned to CNA that the expansion of subsidies for assisted reproduction in July 2021, which increased the maximum age for eligibility to 45, may have contributed to the rise in the number of people seeking treatment. The 2022 figure was 52.7 percent higher than in 2020. He advised women to consider the optimal time for pregnancy and childbirth due to age-related impacts on fertility and health outcomes for both mother and child.