Hello all, 

I’d like to start out this petition with the most important part, The reason behind it! 

Recently my son was diagnosed with Phimosis. If you don’t know what that is, it’s the inability to retract the skin (foreskin or prepuce) covering the head (glans) of the penis. This only occurs in uncircumcised men or people. Which may cause complications to develop such as bleeding or infection around the foreskin, or painful urination. Which unfortunately happened to my son. His doctor prescribed a steroid cream with the intent to loosen the skin and give him normal function and the ability to conduct proper hygiene. But to no avail we were back to where we started and he needed to have a circumcision.

Now most of you know that circumcision is considered a “cosmetic surgery”. That also means insurance will only foot the bill if the operation is deemed “medically necessary”. And many people like myself forego the surgery at birth simply because of the out of pocket cost. I know what you’re thinking, Why have a child if you can’t afford the surgery? But you also know there’s a very wide range of answers to that question.

And while I understand the personal, religious, cultural and ethical reasons behind the surgery itself. I also believe parents everywhere should be entitled to the opportunity for their child to have the surgery at birth. And to have it covered by insurance to be considered “a preventative measure” and “the right to choose”. If I’d been given this opportunity my child wouldn’t have to go through this at 7 years old.

My intention is NOT to make circumcision mandatory. Nor is it to make people feel that their right to choose against the procedure is invalid. As I mentioned above, some parents choose to have it and some don’t. My intention IS to give all parents from all backgrounds and beliefs the right to choose without the concern for the cost. 

For patients not covered by health insurance,  a young child (infant) circumcision can cost anywhere between $250-$400. While circumcision for an older child or adult male costs anywhere between $800-$3,000. Crazy right?

Research has shown that surgical removal of the penis's foreskin has potential health benefits including lower risk of penile cancer, cervical cancer in female sexual partners, and infant urinary tract infections in male infants. The rate of adverse effects in male circumcision is 0.4% for infants under 1 year, about 9% for children ages 1 to 9 years, and about 5% for males 10 years and older. With that said, having your child circumcised at birth minimizes the potential risks for the patient later in life if they choose to have it done or if medically necessary.

In my opinion, the benefits outweigh the risks. I’m asking for as much support as I can get. This subject hits home for me as I’m sure it does with a lot of you. My goal is to get this petition approved and have this optionadded to as many insurance companies as possible. And “the right to choose” in all of our hospitals.

Thank you for reading!