General

Divorce increases vasectomy reversals

As more people remarry, men seek to reverse sterilization surgery

In the UK, where 16 per cent of men under 70 have had a vasectomy, a growing number of men are seeking to get the procedure reversed in order to start fresh with a new partner, the BBC reports. Although remarriages now account for nearly 40 per cent of weddings there, vasectomy reversals are generally not publicly funded (the government put a ban on them in 2004 due to soaring demand, although they still pay in limited cases); they can be costly, and their success is not guaranteed. Critics are now arguing the procedure should be publicly funded. “If the [National Health Service] is going to offer vasectomies—and it should, as this is a cost effective and efficient way of preventing pregnancy—then there should be funding of reversals,” says retired NHS consultant Dr .Sam Nag. “People’s lives can change dramatically—we should accept that rather than adopting this ‘you made your bed now lie in it’ attitude.”

BBC News

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