Plastic surgery raffles raising concerns among UK health groups

by Jessica Smith

06/29/2011 at 10:00AM

Health groups in Great Britain are opposing the use of cosmetic surgery as a lottery prize, according to an article posted June 27 on the online BBC Radio Newsbeat.

Just days after a raffle known as "My Big Fat Plastic Surgery Prize Draw" was held in a London night club - purportedly the first in a monthly series across Great Britain - groups such as the Independent Healthcare Advisory Services (IHAS) and the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons have begun speaking out against the award of cosmetic procedures as prizes. According to the groups, such awards encourage young people to undergo procedures they hadn't before considered.

"My Big Fat Plastic Surgery" contestants are asked to purchase raffle tickets for 25 British pounds (about $40) for a chance to win the grand prize: up to 4,000 pounds (about $6,400) worth of plastic surgery procedures. Smaller prizes include injectable fillers and semi-permanent makeup.

Sarah Barge, 50, the United Kingdom's "Real Life Barbie," is working with a cosmetic surgery group to offer the raffle. Barge told BBC Radio Newsbeat that these lotteries are not dangerous. "We've started these prize draws following years of research," she said. "We know there are tens of thousands of people who want to change the way they look."

But IHAS Director Sally Taber disagrees, telling BBC Radio Newsbeat that the prizes don't allow people to make informed decisions on important, life-changing procedures. "They're enticing people to have cosmetic surgery who may not have even thought about it," she told BBC.

The British government has commented that people are free to choose to have elective surgery, and that companies can advertise through raffles as long as they follow United Kingdom Advertising Standards Agency codes for posting accurate and socially responsible advertisements.

The ASPS Code of Ethics allows participation in raffles only in cases where there is no plastic surgery procedure offered. A "procedure" is defined as a medical service for which an incision is required. (See Section 2, subsection I, K, in the ASPS Code of Ethics.)