Students Itch for Cheaper Testing
Joe Karlya
A tall Chai at Starbucks costs $3.25. A cheeseburger at Wendy’s, $1.99. Yet the going rate of testing for certain sexually transmitted diseases is said to be too steep, according to some GW students.
GW’s Student Health center provides testing for diseases such as gonorrhea, HIV and Chlamydia for cost of around $100. Such a price may be too high for some students. Recently the suggestion has been made by Hatchet columnist Asher Corson that GW should make efforts to lower the cost of testing.
Is it the University’s responsibility to divert funds, (your tuition dollars) towards lowering the cost of testing for STDs, such as gonorrhea? A handful of Student Association senators seem to think so. Ben Traverse (CCAS-U) proposed legislation in November 2004 calling for an increase in the Student Health Services Budget. With the backing of three co-sponsors, the idea is actually being considered in committee.
The resolution notes that neighboring schools offer HIV testing at a much lower price. HIV testing will cost $30 at American University, and only $10 at the University of Maryland. The test is free at Howard University. Other schools such as New York University, Northwestern University, and Tulane University all offer HIV tests for $25. If you’re up for the trip, Washington University in St. Louis offers testing for all STDs, free of charge.
Contention arises from the fact that Student Health charges $42 for HIV testing, and $60 for other sexually transmitted diseases. Rumor has it that GW’s failure to subsidize Gonorrhea testing will be a decisive factor in its failure to make this year’s list of Top 50 “Promiscuity Friendly” Colleges.
For there to be a subsidy of your tuition dollars involved, GW’s Board of Trustees would have to demonstrate the will to devote money to such a concern. Why would they, when nearby health clinics such as the Whitman Walker Clinic offer testing for free? Is the itch really so bad that a few extra blocks seem unbearable?
Statistically, 75% of STDs occur in people between the ages of 15 and 24. As a part of this age group, GW is notorious for promiscuity and irresponsible sexual behavior which help create these figures; Our University’s own Thurston Hall has been cited by Playboy magazine as the second most sexually promiscuous college dorm in the country. The spread of disease within freshman residents such as Thurston is a curious occurrence. “People are excited to be in college and want to make friends” explains Maggie Redd, Junior.
Some feel that, as college students, we should know better. One City Hall resident, who wished to remain nameless, asked, “Why should the school pay for it? Why is it the school’s fault that you’re having sex with multiple partners?” Citing the fact that most students have had sex education by the time they begin at GW, the student also remarked, “It falls in the same category of getting pregnant – if you have sex, you should know that you could get an STD.” Junior Lynn Pellicano agrees. “Students should take initiative to care for their health, and do so on their own accord.”
The idea of raising awareness concerning sexual responsibility and consequences among students at our campus is an important one, and should be taken up by our Student Association. It would certainly be easier to throw money at the problem, and perhaps allow for more affordable testing for some students. Yet this side-steps the core of the problem--the widespread tendency among students to make poor choices with grave consequences for their health.