Does a man have a right to have good sexual function?

There are some very unhappy men in the UK following the decision by a number of National Health Service Trusts to restrict the amount of Viagra, Cialis and Levitra that they allow men to have.

For example Mr. Simon Lord from Oxfordshire said that as a result of the decision he is only able to get one Cialis tablet a month instead of the usual four tablets monthly. He said that he was now unable to live a normal life following his prostate cancer operation which damaged nerves required for good sexual function. Oxfordshire NHS Trust which spends £700,000 a year on erectile dysfunction medication has set a target to halve the amount.

Mr. Lord's case is an interesting one because he argues that the reason he needs Cialis is not because he is a smoker or overweight but purely because he was unlucky enough to suffer from prostate cancer. He said that he felt it was unprofessional for the NHS not to consider that men who suffered from prostate cancer really needed erectile dysfunction medication in order to normal lives.

What Mr. Lord seems to be trying to say is that he is a more worthy recipient of free erectile dysfunction medication than people who smoke, don't exercise and who are overweight and therefore suffer from erectile dysfunction as a result of lifestyle choices. This is obviously a very controversial subject and some men will argue that no matter how unhealthy their lives are they still have the right to free erectile dysfunction medication.

Does a man have a right to have good sexual function? Some people [mainly women] will argue that once a man's erectile function has diminished naturally he has no right to an erection paid for by the state! Well, it probably all depends on what side of the argument you are on! Is good sex a right or a luxury?