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The current bill being considered by the U.S. government that could bar people on Medicaid from getting health care from Planned Parenthood affects both men and women that turn to the organization for testing and treatment. Yet, 86 percent of calls that are going into Congress about this bill are from women.
“We do serve men, it’s the fastest growing population,” Cecile Richards, the president of the organization, said at the Code Conference at the Terranea Resort in California. “A lot of young men come to us for STI testing and treatment [because] you need a place to go where you’re not going to be judged.”
In other words, these are not just women’s issues, Richards said. In fact, a number of men turn to Planned Parenthood for vasectomies.
“I was in San Diego ... in one of our health centers,” Richards said. “The TV — which is usually on soaps or Wendy Williams — was tuned to ESPN and I [wondered], ‘What is going on?’ It was vasectomy day in San Diego.
“It’s a big day,” she continued.
The busiest time for vasectomies at Planned Parenthood? March Madness.
“[A friend] was scheduling a vasectomy at Planned Parenthood and they said we can see you in February and we can see you in April but we can’t see you in March,” she said. “So he said, ‘Well why can’t you see me in March?’ They said, ‘That’s March madness and we’re full up because everyone’s getting their vasectomy in March so they could go and sit at home and watch the games on TV.’”
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
