As circumcision rates drop, costs increase: study

NEW YORK, Aug 21: As gaps in insurance coverage lead to fewer male babies being circumcised in the United States, related health costs could end up increasing by millions of dollars every year, a new study suggests. Using a model based on studies of the long-term health effects of circumcision, researchers predicted that the rate of urinary tract infections in male babies would more than double – and the rate of HIV infections in men increase by 12 percent – if only one in ten male newborns was circumcised nationwide. (agencies)