Bergen County sits at one of the busiest fertility care crossroads in the country. Patients in northern New Jersey have within reach some of the largest hospital-affiliated fertility networks in the metropolitan area, along with independent REI practices stretching from the Hudson River waterfront to the suburbs north and west of the George Washington Bridge. Within that crowded landscape, University Reproductive Associates — headquartered at 214 Terrace Ave in Hasbrouck Heights — occupies a distinctive position: an academically rooted, multi-site practice with institutional origins at what is now Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, a faculty-level physician team, and a fully equipped in-house embryology laboratory. The practice holds a 4.3-star patient rating across more than 271 reviews, serves patients from across northern New Jersey and the greater New York metropolitan area, and has grown since its founding in 1985 into a six-location network covering Hasbrouck Heights, Hoboken, Wayne, Millburn, Denville, and Goshen, NY. For patients researching fertility clinics in New Jersey, URA represents one of the state's most established and deeply credentialed options.
Physicians and Clinical Team
University Reproductive Associates fields ten board-certified reproductive endocrinologists, a physician assistant, and a PhD-level laboratory director — a staffing depth that reflects four decades of institutional investment in subspecialty care.
Peter McGovern, MD is a co-founder of URA and among the most senior REI practitioners in New Jersey. He earned his medical degree from New York University School of Medicine, completed his OB/GYN residency at NYU Bellevue Medical Center, and finished his Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility fellowship at New Jersey Medical School University Hospital in Newark. Double board-certified in OB/GYN and REI, Dr. McGovern holds a clinical professorship at New Jersey Medical School and serves as associate REI fellowship director at Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School. He also serves as an oral board examiner for the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology and reviews manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals including Fertility and Sterility and Obstetrics and Gynecology. His clinical focus areas include recurrent pregnancy loss, IVF, PCOS, tubal sterilization reversal, and minimally invasive surgery.
Sara Morelli, MD, PhD serves as division director of the Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility division at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and as the REI fellowship director — making her one of the few clinicians in the state who both provides direct patient care and shapes the training pipeline for the next generation of REI specialists. She earned her undergraduate degree from Cornell University, her medical degree from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and completed her OB/GYN residency at NYU School of Medicine before returning to Rutgers for her REI fellowship. She simultaneously earned a PhD from Rutgers Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, with research focused on disorders of the uterine lining, including endometrial function, endometriosis, and ectopic pregnancy. Dr. Morelli is an associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women's Health at Rutgers, a member of the Endocrine Society, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, and the Society for Reproductive Investigation, and the recipient of a Foundation Scholar Award from the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Adam Fechner, MD is board-certified in both OB/GYN and REI, having completed a three-year subspecialty fellowship at UMDNJ (now Rutgers) — the same institution that anchors much of URA's academic affiliation — with training in both advanced assisted reproductive technology and minimally invasive surgery.
Rita Gulati, MD brings more than 20 years of experience in reproductive health throughout the New York metropolitan area. Her academic path ran through a six-year accelerated BS/MD program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Albany Medical College, with OB/GYN residency at Emory University School of Medicine and an REI fellowship at the University of Connecticut Health Center. She is double board-certified in REI and OB/GYN, is affiliated with St. Barnabas Medical Center, Morristown Memorial Hospital, and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, and lectures to fellows, residents, and medical students in addition to her patient care role.
Kavitha Persaud, MD is a New Jersey native who completed her medical degree at Drexel University College of Medicine and her REI fellowship at Rutgers-New Jersey Medical School, training directly under McGovern, Wolf, Fechner, and Morelli — giving her a clinical lineage continuous with URA's founding faculty. She is double board-certified and practices primarily at the Wayne and Goshen offices.
The clinical team also includes Anat Chemerinski, MD, Ndidiamaka Onwubalili, MD, Michael Cho, MD, Jacquelyn Loughlin, MD, and Susan Wolf, MD, all reproductive endocrinologists, along with Sherifa Julien-Johnson, PA, a board-certified physician assistant.
The laboratory is led by Sangita Jindal, PhD, who holds a doctorate in physiology from the University of Toronto, has been credentialed as a high-complexity clinical laboratory director since 1997, and holds a faculty appointment as Professor and IVF Laboratory Director at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Jindal's simultaneous academic and clinical role positions URA's embryology lab within a research-engaged setting.
Services and Treatments
University Reproductive Associates offers a full spectrum of fertility evaluation and treatment services across its six locations:
- In vitro fertilization (IVF) with fresh and frozen embryo transfer protocols
- Egg freezing (oocyte cryopreservation) for elective fertility preservation and medical fertility preservation prior to cancer treatment
- Intrauterine insemination (IUI) for appropriate candidates, with and without ovarian stimulation
- Intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) for male-factor infertility or prior fertilization failure
- Preimplantation genetic testing (PGT-A and PGT-M) for chromosomal screening and monogenic disease evaluation
- Ovulation induction with timed intercourse or IUI
- Third-party reproduction, including egg donation and gestational carrier programs
- Recurrent pregnancy loss evaluation and treatment
- Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) management
- Endometriosis evaluation and minimally invasive surgical treatment
- Fertility preservation for oncology patients
- LGBTQ+ family building services, including same-sex couple protocols and reciprocal IVF
- Medical and surgical treatment for uterine, tubal, and other structural factors
- Virtual care through a partnership with Maven Clinic, the leading telehealth platform for reproductive and family-building support
URA is the only IVF center in New Jersey using LifeAire® air purification technology within its embryology lab — a system designed to eliminate airborne contaminants that can impair embryo development. The practice also employs Trophon® high-level disinfection for ultrasound probes, reflecting an attention to safety protocols beyond standard clinical minimums. For a comprehensive overview of what IVF involves clinically and financially, see our IVF guide.
Laboratory and Success Rates
URA's embryology laboratory at the Hasbrouck Heights main site has been continuously operated and upgraded since the practice's founding. The 2018 renovation introduced the LifeAire® purification system alongside other infrastructure upgrades, and the 2023 acquisition of The Diamond Institute for Infertility and Menopause expanded both clinical capacity and laboratory volume. Sangita Jindal, PhD, has directed laboratory operations for nearly three decades and maintains a parallel academic appointment at Albert Einstein College of Medicine — an uncommon depth of laboratory leadership for a private fertility practice.
URA reports publicly on IVF outcomes through the CDC Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) national surveillance system, which publishes cycle-level success rate data by age group and transfer type. The Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology (SART) also collects and publishes member clinic data; patients can review URA's reported outcomes directly on the SART clinic report database. Independently compiled data from third-party sources indicates live birth rates of approximately 45–46% for patients under 35, with rates declining progressively across older age groups in alignment with national REI benchmarks.
When comparing success rates across clinics, patients should account for case-mix differences — practices that treat a higher proportion of poor-prognosis patients, including those with diminished ovarian reserve, recurrent pregnancy loss, or multiple prior IVF failures, may report lower aggregate rates than clinics that screen for favorable candidates. URA's academic affiliation and breadth of services suggests a patient population that includes a meaningful proportion of complex and referred cases.
Patient Experience
Patient reviews for University Reproductive Associates over its six-location footprint reflect a consistent pattern: clinical competence paired with a care environment that patients describe as attentive and emotionally supportive despite the high patient volume. The 4.3-star rating across more than 271 reviews is a strong result for a multi-site academic-affiliated practice in one of the nation's most competitive fertility markets.
Reviewers frequently highlight individual physicians by name — most often for thorough explanation of treatment plans, responsiveness during monitoring phases, and willingness to discuss prognosis directly and honestly. The nursing and support staff receives notable mention for ease of communication, with patients describing responsiveness to portal messages and after-hours calls during active stimulation cycles as above average for a large practice.
URA's early morning monitoring hours — weekdays beginning at 6:30 AM and weekend monitoring available both Saturday and Sunday — allow patients to complete baseline and stimulation check appointments before standard business hours begin. The six-location network gives patients in different parts of northern New Jersey and the lower Hudson Valley flexibility to attend monitoring appointments at whichever site is most convenient on a given day, while maintaining their primary physician relationship at the Hasbrouck Heights main office.
A partnership with Maven Clinic extends support beyond the clinic visit itself, giving URA patients on-demand access to nurses, health coaches, and mental health providers through a telehealth platform specialized in reproductive and family-building care — an important supplement during the waiting periods and result disclosures that are among the most stressful phases of fertility treatment.
Some reviewers note that high patient volume can occasionally affect scheduling access and the consistency of same-physician continuity across a full cycle. Patients who prioritize seeing the same clinician at every appointment may benefit from discussing scheduling preferences with URA's team at the outset of treatment.
Considering At-Home Insemination?
Not every fertility journey begins in a clinic. At-home intracervical insemination (ICI) is a lower-cost, private option that suits patients with no known fertility diagnosis — including single parents by choice, same-sex couples, and people who want to try a few cycles before committing to clinical treatment.
At-home insemination kits like those from MakeAMom come with step-by-step instructions designed for donor or partner sperm. Kits are a one-time purchase that can be reused until conception succeeds, require no clinic visit, and arrive in plain, discreet packaging. Many patients use them as a first step while working toward a fertility consultation — or alongside ovulation tracking while they wait for an appointment slot.
If you have a known fertility diagnosis, have been trying for 12 months without success (six months if you're over 35), or your physician has already recommended IUI or IVF, a board-certified reproductive endocrinologist is the right next step.
Insurance and Financing
New Jersey offers one of the most comprehensive state-level fertility insurance mandates in the country, and patients treated at a New Jersey–based practice like URA are positioned to access its full provisions. The New Jersey Family Building Act requires fully insured health plans covering groups of more than 50 employees — where the employer is headquartered in New Jersey — to cover medically necessary infertility diagnosis and treatment, including:
- Unlimited IUI cycles
- Up to four lifetime IVF egg retrievals, including fresh and frozen embryo transfers
- ICSI, PGT, and associated diagnostic testing
- Fertility medications associated with covered procedures
A 2024 expansion of the mandate shortened waiting period requirements — from two years to one year for patients under 35, and from one year to six months for patients 35 and older — and extended the mandate's scope to single women and same-sex couples, closing prior gaps in coverage eligibility.
URA accepts Cigna and Aetna insurance plans, and patients should confirm with their insurer whether their specific plan is fully insured (as opposed to self-insured, which is exempt from the state mandate under federal ERISA rules) and whether URA is in-network for their plan year. For patients whose employers are headquartered outside New Jersey or whose plans are self-insured, out-of-pocket costs will depend on individual plan terms.
For patients without insurance coverage or with limited benefits, URA offers financing options; prospective patients should discuss available programs with the practice's financial counselors at the time of consultation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the IVF success rates at University Reproductive Associates?
URA reports outcomes data through both the CDC ART surveillance program and SART, where clinic-specific cycle reports are publicly searchable. Independently compiled data suggests live birth rates of approximately 45–46% for patients under 35, with rates declining across older age cohorts in line with national REI standards. Because URA treats a broad range of diagnoses — including complex recurrent pregnancy loss cases, poor responders, and patients referred after prior cycle failures at other centers — aggregate rates may not fully represent expected outcomes for a first-time, good-prognosis patient. Individual prognosis is best established at a formal consultation with a URA physician.
Does New Jersey insurance cover IVF treatment at URA?
In most cases, yes — for employees covered under qualifying plans. The New Jersey Family Building Act mandates IVF coverage for fully insured plans at employers with more than 50 New Jersey-headquartered employees, with a lifetime benefit of four egg retrievals. The 2024 expansion of the mandate extended eligibility to single women and same-sex couples and reduced waiting periods. Self-insured plans — common at large national employers — are exempt under federal ERISA law. Patients should confirm their plan type and URA's in-network status with their insurer before beginning treatment.
Who are the main physicians at University Reproductive Associates?
URA's team of ten board-certified reproductive endocrinologists includes several physicians with concurrent faculty appointments at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. Co-founder Peter McGovern, MD serves as associate REI fellowship director; Sara Morelli, MD, PhD serves as division director and fellowship director of the REI program; and Rita Gulati, MD, Adam Fechner, MD, and Kavitha Persaud, MD each completed REI fellowships at major academic centers. The laboratory is led by Sangita Jindal, PhD, who holds a concurrent appointment at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
What makes URA different from other fertility clinics in northern New Jersey?
URA's strongest differentiators are its academic depth and its longevity. Founded in 1985 as part of what is now Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, the practice has operated continuously for more than four decades and trained a substantial portion of the state's REI subspecialists through its fellowship program. Multiple current physicians hold active Rutgers faculty appointments, meaning patient care and research are conducted within the same institutional framework. The LifeAire® air purification system — unique to URA among New Jersey IVF programs — reflects a laboratory investment in embryo culture conditions beyond standard clinical requirements. Six clinic locations across northern New Jersey and New York provide access to monitoring without requiring patients to commute to Hasbrouck Heights for every appointment.