PIP: If a medical procedure will secondarily result in the sterilization of the patient, is the consent of the patient's spouse required? Is the consent of the patient's spouse required if the procedure is not medically necessary, but is intended primarily for sterilization? If a procedure is medically necessary, the consent of the patient's spouse in not required. The consent of the spouse is not required even if it incidentally will result in the sterilization of the patient. Statutes in Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia requie the written consent of the patient's spouse to voluntary sterilizations. In the absence of such a statute, no definitive answer can be given. Every individual does have the right to consent to any lawful Medical treatment or procedure. However, an individual also has an interest in the procreative ability of his or her spouse. While it appears that the right to consent to lawful medical procedures would be paramount to the interest of the patient's spouse, this matter has not yet been judicially resolved.