100 signatures reached
To: Conservative party
Fertility Equality for Same-Sex/ LGBTQ+ couples in the UK
*Stop discriminating against LGBTQ+ families in the UK. Sexual orientation should NOT be a barrier to having a family. Help us demand a government review of the fertility sector.*
Why is this important?
Help fight against discrimination and equal rights for Fertility Equality for Same-Sex/ LGBTQ+ couples in the UK with fertility.
NHS England forces many LGBTQ+ couples and single women to pay £10,000 to £30,000+ in artificial inseminations in expensive private clinics to ‘prove infertility’, before they qualify for help. Other members of the LGBTQ+ community also face even higher costs while trying to start their families. However most heterosexual couples qualify after two years of unprotected sex, which albeit a long time, holds no additional financial cost. This is discrimination.
In order to quality for IVF, the majority of CCG’s (Clinical Commissioning Groups) in England require LGBTQ+ couples and single women to undergo 6 failed rounds of self-funded IUI. Home insemination does not count in the eligibility for Same-Sex couples. Plus, there has been a ban on sperm from sperm banks being shipped to homes since 2005.
This forces LGBTQ+ people to use private clinics if they want to access safe, medically-screened sperm, or risk more dangerous routes, or give up on hopes and dreams of creating a family.
The Government should review fertility treatment in England to ensure equality of access for LGBT+ and same-sex couples, and to make treatment consistent with Wales & Scotland.
This review should investigate:
- Whether sufficient support for home insemination is available
- The application of NICE guidelines by CCGs
- How the apparent ‘postcode lottery’ in fertility treatment can be ended..
NHS England forces many LGBTQ+ couples and single women to pay £10,000 to £30,000+ in artificial inseminations in expensive private clinics to ‘prove infertility’, before they qualify for help. Other members of the LGBTQ+ community also face even higher costs while trying to start their families. However most heterosexual couples qualify after two years of unprotected sex, which albeit a long time, holds no additional financial cost. This is discrimination.
In order to quality for IVF, the majority of CCG’s (Clinical Commissioning Groups) in England require LGBTQ+ couples and single women to undergo 6 failed rounds of self-funded IUI. Home insemination does not count in the eligibility for Same-Sex couples. Plus, there has been a ban on sperm from sperm banks being shipped to homes since 2005.
This forces LGBTQ+ people to use private clinics if they want to access safe, medically-screened sperm, or risk more dangerous routes, or give up on hopes and dreams of creating a family.
The Government should review fertility treatment in England to ensure equality of access for LGBT+ and same-sex couples, and to make treatment consistent with Wales & Scotland.
This review should investigate:
- Whether sufficient support for home insemination is available
- The application of NICE guidelines by CCGs
- How the apparent ‘postcode lottery’ in fertility treatment can be ended..
