Photo Courtesy of Associated Press: Sandra Fluke testifying infront of Congress.
Jesse Russell
The Paw Print
Last week Sandra Fluke, a third-year Georgetown law student, testified in front of Congress regarding insurance covering the cost of contraceptives for women. Fluke came to the Capitol as an advocate for women’s reproductive rights and not as a victim.
Sandra Fluke, representing Law Students for Reproductive Justice (LSRJ) never said insurance companies should pay for contraception to prevent women from getting pregnant, but that “women who need this medication for other medical reasons suffer dire consequences.”
According to Fluke “Georgetown does not cover contraceptives in its student insurance, although it does cover contraceptives for faculty and staff.” She told Nancy Pelosi and those at the hearing that every day “I hear from yet another woman who has suffered financial, emotional, and medical burdens because of this lack of contraceptive coverage.” Fluke asserted that over the course of Law school the cost of contraception can run upwards of $3,000.
“In sixty-five percent of cases, our female students were interrogated by insurance representatives and university medical staff about why they need these prescriptions and whether they’re lying about their symptoms.”
Sandra Fluke provided examples of real women needing medically necessary treatment. A friend with polycystic ovarian syndrome has to take prescription birth control to stop cysts from growing on her ovaries. “For my friend, and 20 percent of women in her situation, she never got the insurance company to cover her prescription, despite verification of her illness from her doctor.”
Fluke stated that her friend was denied coverage on the basis that she was lying about why she needed the contraceptive medicine. “She’s gay, so clearly polycystic ovarian syndrome was a much more urgent concern than accidental pregnancy.” Ultimately, her ovary had to be removed and she now faces the risk of early on-set menopause.
Another friend requires surgery to determine she has endometriosis and therefore “the insurance hasn’t been willing to cover her medication.”
Ms. Fluke believes this sends the message that “[a] woman’s reproductive healthcare isn’t a necessity, isn’t a priority.”
Whenever a derisive issue comes up, there always exist opponents making unqualified claims. Rush Limbaugh labeled Sandra Fluke a “slut” because of his connotation between contraception and promiscuity.
Not once did Fluke mention insurance covering the cost of contraception to allow women to have sex without getting pregnant, although such allowances should exist. When it comes to providing dual-purpose medications, contraception seems to be the least damaging to a person when abused.
Limbaugh himself has taken oxycontin to alleviate pain, yet he has the nerve to trivialize women using contraceptive medication to stop cysts and treat other maladies.
Sandra Fluke asked how could “Congress consider allowing even more employers and institutions to refuse contraceptive coverage and then respond that the non-profit clinics should step up to take care of the resulting medical crisis, particularly when so many legislators are attempting to defund those very same clinics?”
The issue people have over contraception seems to be spiritual and or moral. The time has come to instead apply logic and sanity.
What’s Been Said…