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-- b i o --
Elizabeth Weaver Engel, besides being a budding writer, is a stealth geek, a manager (but NOT the Pointy-Haired Boss) at a non-profit association, a distance runner, a "rabid" Lindy Hopper, and a connoisseur of fine B-grade movies. 

Currently a resident of Washington, DC, Elizabeth grew up outside of Philadelphia and holds a Master's degree in political theory from the University of Virginia.  She fell into working with computers by accident and has since been struggling to pull herself out.  Writing for Mindjack is one of the steps she's taking to do so.

Viagra Wars
by Elizabeth Weaver Engel

OK, it was inevitable. Sooner or later, you knew I'd have to write about it. If there's anyone reading this who hasn't heard about Viagra, raise your hand. Good. Now use that hand to feel your way out of the cave you've been living in, baby. Viagra exploded (ba-dum-bum) into the news this spring to the great delight of stand up comedians everywhere. And I guess it's all well and good that men can take care of this little...uh...problem without resorting to the earlier, more painful methods (shots? You gotta be kidding me!).

But this wonder of modern medicine has not appeared without controversy. First of all, there's that whole sticky death problem. In their haste to market this drug, it appears that perhaps Pfizer may not have run trials on a sufficiently large - or sufficiently unhealthy - population to be certain of all the potential side effects. And let's face it, in light of the unpleasant nature of the other possible treatments (pumps, injections, surgery, and psychoanalysis), how many men are really going to read all the fine print before popping their little blue happy pill? To date (mid-June when I'm writing this), 16 men in the U.S. alone have died for an erection. No, not sex, an erection. As any reasonably imaginative person could tell you, an erection is no more necessary to good sex than power windows are to a car. Sure, it's a nice feature, but you can still have a pretty good ride without it.

Second, there's the insurance issue. Those little pills are pretty damn expensive! Health insurance companies have not generally been in the business of paying for "quality of life" types of treatment. How many pay for elective plastic surgery or mental health counseling? On the other hand, an awful lot of insurance company upper management types fall into the demographic range likely to be served by Viagra. Arguments are raging back and forth as to whether Viagra constitutes treatment of a medical condition like insulin shots or a luxury item like a face lift. Many insurers have reached the "compromise" position of only paying for 5 or 6 pills a month - you want to play (more), you have to come up with the cash yourself.

But that's not the most insidious part. Do you know how many insurance plans currently cover birth control pills? Only approximately 1/3 of existing plans cover them, far fewer than cover Viagra prescriptions. At $10 a pill, your monthly Viagra prescription would run your insurer about $60. The most expensive birth control pills are about $30 a month. In other words, insurers will pay to get you pregnant and will pay part of the prenatal care and delivery costs. But they won't shell out for pills to help keep you from getting pregnant. Does this seem unjust to anyone other than me?

And on that last note, the Catholic church has just weighed in on the issue of Viagra. Not surprisingly, they approve of its use. So let me get this straight: it's acceptable to use an artificial means to GET pregnant, but it's not acceptable to use an artificial means to PREVENT pregnancy. One interferes with God's will, but apparently the other does not. Oh, I see - God (or at least the Catholic hierarchy) likes women barefoot and pregnant, while "erectile dysfunction" must come from...Satan! (Thank you, Church Lady!) Logical contradiction here people? Either the Catholic hierarchy needs to hire itself a second year philosophy undergrad to run through Logic 101 for them in a hurry, or they owe a lot of women a BIG apology.

The writer of this article welcomes your comments:  ewengel@mindjack.com