As Georgia restricts abortions, clinics see a surge in men coming in for vasectomies
ATLANTA - When Brad Slayton first came to see Georgia Urology's Dr. Shaya Taghechian for a vasectomy consult, the 40-something father and his soon-to-be wife had already made up their minds.
"I knew, and my wife knew: no more kids," Slayton says.
Slayton decided to undergo the surgical sterilization procedure, which typically takes about 15-20 minutes and has an average cost about $1,000, according to Planned Parenthood.
"I have two kids from a previous marriage, and she has two kids from a previous marriage, and we were getting ready for our wedding," he says, "It was kind of like, 'Four is good; we don't want five.'"
Also, vasectomies, which have been around for decades, appear to be having a moment this summer.
After a draft of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision was leaked in May.
Google reported a 99% jump in users searching for the term "vasectomy" and a 250% jump in questions about how effective the procedure is.
Dr. Taghecian says Georgia Urology has seen a similar rise in calls about vasectomies since the Court announced its decision.
"I don't think we expected it to jump this much, but it certainly did," she says. "The decision that came down from Roe versus Wade definitely made a huge impact."
Within days, Taghechian says, Georgia Urology's vasectomy consults doubled from about 15 to 30 a day.
"Probably, I would think it is the husbands, or the men, trying to shoulder some of the burden when it comes to birth control, which I am sure many women appreciate," she says. "And, it's a safe, easy, quick procedure, guaranteed to work."
Brad Slaton says he was motivated by his marriage, not the new abortion restrictions.
Still, he says, he can see why more men are considering a vasectomy in the wake of the Court's decision.
"It makes sense," Slaton says. "If you're not wanting to bring a child into the world, this procedure makes sense to go and do. It's an hour, in the door and out the door, it's an hour."