Changes have arrived for student health care at Oberlin College

If you want to know what someone is all about, watch what they do, not what they say. Actions are parading down Oberlin's Main Street at high noon while words are still thinking about getting dressed. All summer long, while Oberlin College President Carmen Twillie Ambar made grand pronouncements about the importance of access to reproductive healthcare, the institution she leads had removed a substantial part of it from its Student Health Services. Earlier this month, Ambar had much to say during a roundtable discussion with Vice President Kamala Harris and other university leaders. They were summoned to discuss how the rollback of abortion rights would affect college students. She had a lot to say in June when the U.S. Supreme Court issued its Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision, which established that women no longer had a right to an abortion. Ambar issued a campus bulletin reiterating the college's pledge to support students' rights to healthcare access. "I believe that being free to make decisions about one's own reproductive healthcare and being enabled to access that care reflects the values of this institution," Ambar said at the time. Heady talk, from a rarefied position. This is Oberlin College, after all. It was the first college in America to go co-ed, accepting women alongside men in 1837 and opening its doors to African-American students in 1835. It's an icon for liberation, for equality. But this is summer 2022. When Oberlin College makes headlines these days, it's not for making profound historic leaps of leveling the playing field. So, let's look at Oberlin College's actions as of late instead of Ambar's glossy words. Just days before Ambar issued that June bulletin, the six-member staff of the longstanding Student Health Services was told to vacate their jobs after years of serving students. What Ambar also failed to mention is that by the time classes resume this fall, students seeking out a common form of reproductive healthcare — the pill — will find it harder to obtain. Wanting the pill simply not to endure an unwanted pregnancy will no longer be acceptable enough reason on Oberlin's campus to get it. That's because, as of Aug. 1, the college hired Harness Health Partners to take over the student clinic, attending to all health needs from common colds to Pap smears. Harness isn't new to the college, exactly. The agency handled the college's COVID testing through the pandemic. Outsourcing wasn't new to the clinic, as the college hired University Hospitals to run Student Health Services last year. But this year is a bit different. Why? Harness is a subsidiary of Bon Secours Mercy Health, which, like other Catholic healthcare facilities, follows the Ethical and Religious Directives for such agencies. When I started asking questions, Ambar didn't respond. Instead, she released a video this past week to "the community," in which she said: "When we signed the contract with Harness, we were intent on ensuring that the services available at our Student Health Center were comparable to those provided in the past." Ambar goes on to reassure students that they will have access to the services they are used to from Student Health, like prescriptions for birth control or emergency contraception and STI testing, and partnerships with outside agencies for referrals, should they need abortion services or other help, would remain. What did she fail to mention? That Oberlin's new Catholic-run Student Health Services does not prescribe birth control for the sake of contraception. It is only prescribed with "medical indications," said Jennifer Robinson, a spokeswoman for Bon Secours Mercy Health. And Plan B, the emergency contraception known as the "morning after pill"? Robinson said it will now only be given to victims of sexual assault. Both can be filled at retail pharmacies, she said. That is not "comparable" to the services students used to receive, but repeated questions as to why went unanswered by the college. I imagine this will be quite the surprise for the 2,900-member student body returning to classes Thursday. For many years, the clinic was staffed with women's health specialist, nurse practitioner and midwife Aimee Holmes, who solely treated female patients. She performed gynecological exams, dispensed birth control and removed intrauterine devices. Approximately 40 percent of student visits included sexual health, said Erin Gornall, who worked as a registered nurse and clinical coordinator at the facility for about seven years. An onsite pharmacy allowed students to receive birth control pills for free or nominal fees, and emergency contraception — available without a prescription — was given out at no cost. Gornall said many birth control medications were stocked at the clinic because transportation was a barrier for students. Many did not want to use their parents' insurance plans to get birth control medications. Another part of Gornall's job was working with non-binary students, administering testosterone injections for students with physician-issued prescriptions. Robinson said Harness believes that type of care requires "highly specialized medical and psychological support and should be directed by a physician." Still, when asked if a physician would be on staff at the clinic, she said the Harness team would receive support from a medical director and a director of nursing in a statement. I was told the change to Harness/Mercy was made because it's what the students wanted. When I pressed for details, I got crickets. "Honestly, I loved the students," Holmes said. "They loved us, and they loved the care they got from us. This is a big deal, especially for liberal Oberlin College. Especially when I saw that story from the Oberlin City Council, supporting women's rights — and they have no idea how far this has gone." Holmes was referring to a story The Chronicle-Telegram published in July when City Council voted to uphold the right to "bodily autonomy and reproductive freedoms" for all in the aftermath of the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade but acknowledged it was purely symbolic. Like so many words coming out of Oberlin these days. Contact Chronicle-Telegram columnist Rini Jeffers at rinijeffers@gmail.com.