Penis Pumps Funded by Medicare – What About HelpingThe Women?

by Linda Franklin 

 

American taxpayers are spending $36 million a year on penis pumps to treat erectile dysfunction for Medicare patients.  After a political uproar that led to Viagra not being covered by Medicare, doctors began prescribing ‘male vacuum erection systems’ to patients — at an average cost of $338 each. 

The pumps have skyrocketed in popularity since 2007, when Medicare ruled that Viagra, and similar drugs for erectile dysfunction, were ‘lifestyle’ drugs and not medically necessary.

Last year, Medicare paid out $36 million — more than 160,000 vacuum devices.

So, wait a damn minute!  Men always find a way to get help in treating their sexual dysfunction while women are left to twist in the breeze. Remember the disrespectful way women wanting a little insurance coverage for safe birth control were treated not so long ago?  

Always, always the double standard.  Women aren’t supposed to be sexual beings and that’s why natural sexual enhancers like Zestra can’t get advertising spots on national television.  According to the American Medical Association, 43 percent of women suffer from sexual dysfunction, compared to 31 percent of men.    

The question is when will we narrow the margins on this ugly double standard? On the outside it appears our country is so progressive when it comes to sex.  But, clearly that’s not the case.  What is OK for the man is definitely not OK for the women.

The Real Cougar Woman is a 5-carat diamond who knows the importance of taking care of her health, beauty, relationships, finances and spirituality. Linda Franklin says,”there is no stopping a woman who has a strong belief system, passion and a dream. All things are possible”. Linda’s book, Don’t Ever Call Me Ma’am helps women of all ages tap into their power and live life to the fullest.

Slut Has A Whole New Meaning

by Linda Franklin

Slut has a whole new meaning thanks to Rush Limbaugh. When you attacked Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown Law Student because she wanted to include birth control as part of health care coverage, you stripped the word of it’s traditional cruel meaning. Now all women who have ever attempted to decide when and how many children they would have, and with whom, are now sluts.

Slut is a loaded word, a word used for many years to brand women for exercising sexual freedom. Men are not considered sluts. We don’t even have a word in for men who like a lot of sex with different partners.  Therefore their behavior is okay – not so surprising is it?

The thought that a woman might actually enjoy sex for its sex sake is so scary to some men that they will do anything to shut us up. You even invent words to tell us how sinful our behavior is.

Rush, thanks for removing one of the uglier of those words from our vocabulary. After your tirade, the word slut has become a badge of honor, a rallying cry for all women who demand freedom. 

Since you don’t approve of sex for fun, you probably won’t mind that women insist that Viagara be banned from health insurance reimbursement.  If we can’t enjoy sex, neither can you.

The Real Cougar Woman is a 5-carat diamond who knows the importance of taking care of her health, beauty, relationships, finances and spirituality. Linda Franklin says,”there is no stopping a woman who has a strong belief system, passion and a dream. All things are possible”. Linda’s book, Don’t Ever Call Me Ma’am helps women of all ages tap into their power and live life to the fullest.

The Penis Rules Again – Sad Day For Women

by Linda Franklin

We finally get the government to pass a provision under the Affordable Care Act requiring insurance companies to cover contraception and now it looks like we could be back at square one.

It sure feels like the Obama Administration is going to cave into the Catholics and other religious zealots and create an “opt out” provision for employers who don’t want their insurance programs to cover birth control for women. We finally get the government to pass a provision under the Affordable Care Act requiring insurance companies to cover contraception and then it is ripped apart.  I don’t remember anyone protesting when insurance companies decided to cover Viagra.

Many women still go to Planned Parenthood for their birth control because it costs half the price of going to the pharmacy with insurance, if they have it, that doesn’t cover what women really need. 

Our Presidents talk about abortion with limiting language.  Abortion should be legal and  “rare” – if you want abortion to be rare then isn’t contraception the answer?  The U.S. has the highest rate of second trimester abortions in the industrialized world (we also have the highest rate of teen pregnancies and STDs). It’s all about economics – and that’s just not right.

“42% of women having abortions live on an income that falls below the federal poverty level – they are making less than the $208 per week needed to pay for the basic necessities of life – and 53% of women having abortions between weeks 16 and 20 gestation are women in this low-income bracket.”

They have to wait to save up the money to get the abortion because they’re living on $200/week.

If men got pregnant, maybe they’d be singing a different tune.

The Real Cougar Woman is a 5-carat diamond who knows the importance of taking care of her health, beauty, relationships, finances and spirituality. Linda Franklin says,”there is no stopping a woman who has a strong belief system, passion and a dream. All things are possible”. Linda’s book, Don’t Ever Call Me Ma’am helps women of all ages tap into their power and live life to the fullest.

 

 

 

Women’s Sexual Pleasure & The Double Standard

You know, if you've been reading my blogs, that I have a big gripe – and that is the existing double standard which is so unfair to women. Many would argue that it doesn't exist, but it really does and it's keeping important issues out of the public spotlight.  But, yesterday there was big breakthrough.  The outdated double standard was outed by none other than The New York Times.

Abby Ellin at Times wrote a fabulous article on my new blog sexperts Mary Jaensch, CEO and Rachel Braun Scherl, President of Semprae. They are the fabulous twosome who manufacture Zestra, the all natural product that enhances a women's sexual pleasure. This is an article you need to read because it highlights the double standard at work – and it ain't pretty. 

Vigara For Cougars – Don’t Think So!

When Liz Canner was offered a job making erotic videos for women, she admitted she was interested   because it sounded like a good cause to get involved in.

The films were for a drug company called Vivus, which was developing an 'orgasm cream' to boost women's sex lives. They needed some female-friendly erotica to test sexual responses in women before and after treatment with their drug, to find out if it worked.

But the job didn't turn out the way Liz expected. Instead, she ended up making a shocking but hilarious film of her own, Orgasm Inc, which sets out to expose the drug companies and doctors who are now locked in a race to produce a 'female Viagra' – a treatment that promises women a super-charged sex life in a pill.

'The whole idea of these drugs is twisted,' she reveals. 'It's not about sexual empowerment for women, it's about exploiting women and making billions in profits for drug companies. 'They're creating a false idea of what constitutes a "good" or "normal" sex life just so we can all feel abnormal and then go and buy their products.'

Orgasm Incfollows Liz on a nine year journey as she meets CEOs of drug companies, researchers, doctors, scientists and therapists – all claiming to hold the key to the ultimate female sexual experience.

Ever since Viagra for men launched in 1998 and became one of the biggest-selling drugs in history.  It brought sexual dysfunction into the open – and not just for men. Women wanted to try it too.  For the first time, female sexual dysfunction was being taken seriously.

Taking a pill isn't always the answer.  It's wise to dig deeper – finding the root of the problem.