Family campaigners have criticised as ‘grossly discriminatory’ plans to give trans men and lesbians access to NHS-funded IVF two years ahead of heterosexual couples.
Under the controversial proposals, trans men – those born as women who now identify as men – will be automatically assumed to be unable to conceive, as will lesbians and single women.
This means they will be immediately eligible for IVF on the NHS – costing an estimated £5,000 a cycle – if they meet the other criteria, such as a body mass index between 19 and 30, not smoking, being under 43 and not having a partner with a child from a previous relationship.
Heterosexual couples, meanwhile, will still have to prove they can’t have a baby naturally within two years.
The proposed changes will cover a vast swathe of England including Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Leicestershire and Lincolnshire.
The plans, explained in a document called ‘The Case For Change’, are out for an eight-week public consultation ending in January, meaning the new policy could come into force next year.
Hellbound and Down 