Starting Feb. 17, Planned Parenthood Wisconsin has expanded its vasectomy services to the Madison Health East Center to help cover the full spectrum of reproductive health care.
Madison East is the second Planned Parenthood location in Wisconsin, after the Milwaukee Water Street location, to offer vasectomy services as of Feb. 2023, according to Planned Parenthood Director of Communications Analiese Eicher.
A vasectomy is a simple surgical procedure that keeps sperm out of semen, preventing pregnancy by almost 100%, according to the official Planned Parenthood website.
Vasectomies are meant to be permanent and the decision to get one should be thoroughly thought through and discussed, according to the website.
The goal in opening the Madison East Health Center to offering vasectomies is a part of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin’s overall goal to provide the full spectrum of sexual and reproductive health care, Eicher said.
“There’s this thought that Planned Parenthood is just for the pill, the birth control, but it’s so much more,” Eicher said. “And so when we say that we’re able to provide the full spectrum of sexual and reproductive healthcare, we mean it, and providing vasectomy services is part of that.”
People are looking for ways to prioritize their sexual and reproductive health more than ever, especially in the case of family planning, according to Eicher.
There has been a significant amount of confusion about the legality and availability of reproductive and sexual health care procedures in Wisconsin, especially abortion, Eicher said.
“The confusion [on the legality of certain reproductive procedures like abortion] is a part of the strategy from folks who are opposed to people accessing sexual and respective health care, maintaining their own bodily autonomy,” Eicher said.
Abortion is still legal in Wisconsin, with certain restrictions, according to Wisconsin Statute 940.04.
But abortion does have certain restrictions in Wisconsin. For example, there is a ban on late-term abortions except in cases where the mother is in a life-threatening medical emergency, according to Wisconsin statute 253.107.
“Being able to provide vasectomy services in addition to the other services we provide … we are proud to be able to provide those for folks, particularly in a place and time where so much of this is just increasingly out of reach,” Eicher said.
Those looking to schedule an appointment for a vasectomy can reach out online or over the phone for a consultation or to ask additional questions, Eicher said.
The nearest Planned Parenthood location to the University of Wisconsin campus is the Madison South Health Center.
