Apple and Facebook to freeze eggs for female employees

Apple and Facebook are now covering female employees who want to freeze their eggs, NBC reports.

Facebook recently began covering egg-freezing costs, while Apple will start early next year. Both firms will cover up to $20,000 in fees.

When successful, women can delay motherhood by storing their healthy eggs. For some, it is a way to continue one’s career while planning for motherhood in the future.

The firms appear to be the first major companies to offer coverage for non-medical reasons. The move is a way to combat the shortage of professional females in the tech industry.

“Having a high-powered career and children is still a very hard thing to do,” said Brigitte Adams, CEO of Eggsurance.com.

“Companies are investing in women and supporting them in carving out the lives they want,” she told NBC.