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Hilary Swank Sued the SAG Health Plan for Not Covering “Malignant Ovarian Cysts” Removal

Caroline Goldstein
·4 min read
Hilary Swank Sued the SAG Health Plan for Not Covering “Malignant Ovarian Cysts” Removal

Hilary Swank Sued the SAG Health Plan for Not Covering “Malignant Ovarian Cysts” Removal

She called the plan “antiquated” and “barbaric.”

Hilary Swank is suing the SAG-AFTRA’s “antiquated, barbaric” healthcare plan after the plan’s board of trustees refused to cover treatment for her malignant ovarian cysts. People reports that the Oscar-winning actor filed a lawsuit against the health plan’s board of trustees on September 8th, after becoming “truly exhausted by the way women's ovarian and cyclical health issues continue to be treated by healthcare insurance companies," Swank said in a statement.

The actor was initially diagnosed with ovarian cysts in 2008, during which time her "left ovary was destroyed and removed during emergency surgery,” according to court documents obtained by People. Swank alleges that the plan stopped accepting her claims to cover treatment for her cysts in 2015 as the plan considered the procedure an infertility treatment, which they didn’t cover.

Swank was not seeking treatment of her cysts specifically for infertility purposes, but the board was apparently unable to extricate female reproductive organs from reproduction itself.

As Swank noted in the court documents, the plan’s “policies are antiquated, barbaric and primarily view the role of women's organs solely as a means for procreation."

The documents further allege that “the Trustees repeatedly said that there was no medically necessary reason to treat or monitor ovarian cysts other than for 'infertility treatment.'"

Swank is not the first celebrity to speak openly about the medical industry’s inherent bias against female health issues. Last month, Gabrielle Union revealed that she’d struggled with undiagnosed adenomyosis for decades, which resulted in painful, heavy periods and an inability to conceive because doctors simply wouldn’t pay proper attention to her symptoms. Padma Lakshmi had a similar experience with her endometriosis, telling Women’s Health that she was “pissed” it took her doctors so long to give her an official diagnosis.

“I’m shocked that a health professional didn’t say, ‘This is weird. Your cramps are above and beyond what they should be,’” Lakshmi told the magazine.

Although Swank’s lawsuit is deeply personal, she said in her statement that she’s fighting on behalf of all women whose insurance refuses to cover treatment for their own health issues.

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I’m truly exhausted by the way women’s ovarian and cyclical health issues continue to be treated by healthcare insurance companies. I have experienced it in my own life, and I continually read about it across social media and in the press. Their policies are antiquated, barbaric and primarily view the role of women's organs solely as a means for procreation. My hope is to create change for all woman suffering from women’s health issues that have to battle with insurance companies who diminish the significance of their problems, don’t believe the patient (or their doctor's) explanations surrounding their suffering, and severely preclude coverage to only incredibly limited services and procedures. It’s painful enough having to deal with the nature of a female health issue, let alone having to wrestle with the stress of trying to get your insurance company to provide the coverage and care that their contract explicitly states they offer. After years of experiencing my own health issues and the ensuing denials from my healthcare company for services that are medically proven to preserve my life, and seeing how expensive this is to support without the help of an insurance company, I decided to speak up. Based on what I learned, I know that most women can’t afford the medical treatments necessary to cover simple female health issues. I can only assume they either financially deplete their resources, or they forgo the treatments, quietly suffering in pain and risking their lives. My hope is to be a voice for them. SAG / AFTRA Healthplan claim they treat and protect all of their members equally. I don’t believe this is true. If you’re a woman suffering from female health issues, I have no doubt you’ll agree with me. If you’re a man, ask your mother, your daughter, your sister, or a girl friend. I already know the answer. I’m suing SAG / AFTRA Healthplan. It’s time we are treated fairly.

A post shared by Hilary Swank (@hilaryswank) on Sep 9, 2020 at 8:19pm PDT

"My hope is to create change for all women suffering from women's health issues that have to battle with insurance companies who diminish the significance of their problems, don't believe the patient (or their doctor's) explanations surrounding their suffering, and severely preclude coverage to only incredibly limited services and procedures," she said.

She continued, "It's painful enough having to deal with the nature of a female health issue, let alone having to wrestle with the stress of trying to get your insurance company to provide the coverage and care that their contract explicitly states they offer."