At a school as large as Cornell, it is unreasonable to expect every cost to be subsidized by the University. In fact, the slightest attempt at absorbing the gamut of fees that Cornell students have to pay — Net Print, gym membership, parking spaces — would result in nothing short of Big Red Chaos.
However, there are certain aspects of campus life that are far too important to be overlooked by the University for the sake of dollar signs. Sexual health and awareness, an issue promoted extensively, not only by the University itself but also by a myriad of student organizations, is one such example.
Last year, Cornell bore the brunt of national legislation when President Bush signed the Deficit Reduction Act, which limits the power of certain organizations to receive discounts for birth control. Additionally, the Act diminishes incentives for drug companies to provide discounts to university students.
How did this piece of legislation affect Cornell?
Most noticeably, University students saw a jump in the price of birth control. According to Gannett Pharmacy, the price for oral contraceptive pills ranged from $12 to $150 before the Deficit Reduction Act. Prices now are between $25 and $150.
This jump in price has the ability to negatively affect sexually active students. According to the fall 2005 CORE Alcohol and Drug Survey, 51.2 percent of Cornell students who responded reported that they engaged in sexual intercourse within the past year. Additionally, according to the American College Health Association, 40 percent of sexually active college women use a form of perspective birth control.
If over half of Cornell students are sexually active, shouldn’t the University do something to subsidize the rising cost of birth control?
But the issue of sexual health and awareness at Cornell doesn’t just stop here.
Last year, Gannett moved from free HIV testing to a $25 charge, despite protest from both the Student Assembly and the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly. Gannett representatives estimate that absorbing the cost of HIV testing would cost $36,000 a year for the entire University community — less than one year’s tuition for many students.
Administrators cannot afford to sacrifice the health and well-being of its community members for the sake of saving a few bucks. Rising costs create disincentives for students to practice safe sex and to get tested for sexually transmitted diseases. We believe that the University’s failure to address this problem head-on is downright dangerous.