'Sexual orientation should not be a barrier to starting a family' - Lesbian YouTube stars demand change
Social media influencers 'Wegan' are campaiging for equal access to NHS fertility services
A lesbian couple with over 50,000 subscribers on YouTube has launched a petition after finding out they must pay up to £30,000 before the NHS will help them have a baby.
Whitney and Megan Bacon-Evans have been blogging since 2009, sharing their life through YouTube and Instagram under the handle 'whatwegandidnext'. Famous for their appearances in TVs 'Say Yes to the Dress' the couple is now embarking on the first steps of creating a family together.
However, when they visited their GP, they were shocked to discover they must undergo six rounds of artificial insemination privately before being granted a round on the NHS. With each round costing a minimum of £1,000, this would mean spending in the range of £10,000-£30,000 before qualifying for help.
Whitney said: "When we found out we felt devastated, saddened. We just couldn't believe that this was still happening in 2020.
"We should all be equal. Gay marriage is legal so why does that not translate into the family sector?"
While IVF treatment on the NHS does vary depending on where you live, most heterosexual couples qualify after two years of unprotected sex. Megan and Whitney consider this decision to be hugely discriminatory and felt compelled to do something about it.
"It's devestating lesbian women aren't starting families because they simply can't afford it"
They have launched a campaign for equality in fertility treatment, calling for a complete review into LGBTQ+ access to fertility treatment.
Megan said: "In the healthcare system, LGBTQ+ couples should be entitled to equal treatment with heterosexual couples.
"Being LGBTQ+ is not the same as being medically ‘infertile’ and this puts an unfair financial burden on our community.
"We've been contacted by so many followers since sharing our story who've faced the same problems.
"Some haven't bought houses, haven't got married or even put themselves in dangerous situations seeking alternate treatments because they simply can't afford to start a family."
A recent report from the UK’s fertility regulator, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority published in Septmeber confirms this disparity in access to funded IVF.
It found that 39% of IVF cycles for mixed-sex couples were NHS-funded, but just 14% of IVF cycles for female couples received NHS funding.
The report shows that the disparity is drastically worse in some parts of the UK than others. In the South East of England, just 3.4% of lesbians receiving IVF had NHS funding, compared to 13.2% in the East Midlands, 21.6% in Wales and 39.7% in Scotland.
"34% of lesbian women felt their healthcare provider didn't understand their needs"
And this disparity also includes single women who want children or trans men.
Eloise Stonborough is the Associate Director of Policy and Research at Stonewall - an LGBT charity supporting the campaign.
She said: "There's a really clear inequality in access to NHS fertility treatment. We're aware of people turning to un-screened informal sperm donors because they simply can't afford the private treatment.
"I think it's just a clear indication of how broken the system is that people have to take such risks to start a family.
"It's worth consdering that NHS systems currently just aren't set up for LGBT women. We found in our research that 1 in 4 felt their healthcare provider didn't understand their needs, rising to 34% in lesbian women.
"I think that's a really important thing that needs to be addressed in the NHS."
The Department of Health and Social Care told us earlier this year that Matt Hancock is committed to reviewing IVF equality to ensure all couples get equal access to fertility treatment, regardless of sexuality.
They added that existing guidelines are also clear that same sex female couples are entitled to NHS IVF services if they have demonstrated their clinical infertility.
However, Wegan argue lesbian couples have no option to try biologically and therefore fundamentally the system is broken. In their petition they are asking for the government for four key pledges:
- Complete the review into LGBTQ+ access to fertility treatment in the UK that Health Secretary Matt Hancock said he would in summer 2019. Ensuring that they reconsider the ban on home insemination which has been in place since 2005 - forcing all applicants to use private clinics if they want to access safe, medically-screened sperm.
- Ensure CCGs adhere to the NICE guidelines to fund three rounds of IVF for women and trans men under 40 - removing the financial barrier on same sex female couples, single women and trans men to spend money at private clinics first. As well as removing 'postcode lotteries' and streamlining the process, ensuring the requirements and information is easily accessible to all.
- Start to officially collect data on LGBTQ+ families and LGBTQ+ people applying for access to fertility treatment.
- Introduce formal training of all NHS staff on LGBTQ+ issues. Focusing on how to care for LGBTQ+ patients, including LGBTQ+ families seeking fertility treatment.