A South Carolina democrat has just introduced a legislation that would make it has hard for men to access the little blue pill that is Viagra and all other erectile dysfunction pills as it is for women to access abortion services across the states. Columbia state Rep. Mia McLeod says she does not expect the legislation to pass but wants to show men exactly how it feels to have their reproductive rights targeted by outsiders.
“I purposely tried to make it as invasive, as intrusive, as hypocritical and unnecessary as possible to make the point.”
The bill has been pre-filed in the state House of Representatives and, quite frankly, has many absurd notions outlined as requirements for males to access erectile dysfunction pills, but that is the point. Under the bill, men would be required to jump through a number of different hoops and access to ED pills like Viagra and Cialis would be severely restricted.
New bill would make it as hard to get Viagra as it is to get an abortion in South Carolina https://t.co/IKbyc7yLXs pic.twitter.com/1ilNQu1R0o
— Splinter (@splinter_news) December 16, 2015
Planned Parenthood is one of the few legal options women across the United States can use to access abortion services, and it has come under fire from anti-abortionists at every stage of its operations. State funding has also become a distant dream for many Planned Parenthood facilities, and despite the fact that they provide a number of other essential women’s services, the focus is largely on abortion services and many, mostly right wing commenters, are actively trying to get all the facilities to close. The release of a propaganda video by anti-abortionists which allegedly shows Planned Parenthood selling the body parts of the aborted foetuses is being used as a sticking point in right wing arguments.
Like the restrictions many states have in place for women trying to access reproductive services, the men trying to get access to erectile dysfunction pills would have to prove that they really and truly need it. Occupy Democrats outlines several aspects of the requirements men would have to fulfil by law under the bill.
- Access to erectile dysfunction drugs would need a prescription written by a physician.
- A form acknowledging that a doctor has notified him of all the potential risks and complications caused by the pills would have to be signed by the patient. He would then have to wait 24 hours before the prescription could be filled.
- A doctor would have to, under penalty of perjury, give his medical rationale for issuing the prescription, along with a statement proving that it is necessary that the man receive the drug in treat his erectile dysfunction.
- After the drug was prescribed, the man would have mandatory attendance at three counselling sessions during the following six months in order to advise him of other non-pharmaceutical treatments for ED such as pursuing a celibate lifestyle.
According to NBC News, the man would also have to provide a signed and notarized affidavit from at least one of his sexual partners verifying that he has erectile dysfunction problems to get the pills, and a sexual therapist would have to examine him to determine exactly what may be causing the erectile dysfunction.
In such a male-dominated legislature, Mia McLeod says she has no expectations that her bill would actually pass, and men allowing such restrictions on their sexual lives is no doubt not going to happen. McLeod hopes that the bill will highlight how utterly invasive current state laws are into the reproductive lives of women, and is in response to the continued push by lawmakers to restrict women’s access to reproductive health services.
“I really just want to broaden the discussion and get people thinking about and talking about some of the issues that women face who are seeking legal abortion services in this state.”
[Image via Sean Nel/ Shutterstock ]