On Thursday February 9th, the Cornell University Student Assembly (SA) passed a resolution titled “Dependable and Inclusive Supply of Pharmaceutical and Essential Nonprescription Supplies.”
The resolution aims to expand access to emergency contraception across campus by means of vending machines.
The sponsors of the bill include Marley Levy ’24, Duncan Cady ’23, Katherine Esterl ’23, Pedro Da Silveira ’25, Shelby Williams ’25, Victor Wu ’25, Andrew Richmond ’26, Sanvi Bhardwaj ’24, Taisa Strouse ’24, Selam Woldai ’23, Planned Parenthood Generation Action (PPGA) at Cornell, and other activism groups on campus.
The chapter of the Planned Parent Generation Action at Cornell, which is a registered student organization, introduced the initiative in a way to mirror educational institutions such as George Washington University and Boston University, which were among the first in the nation to introduce such a program. Other universities that were discussed during the student assembly meetings were Yale and Dartmouth.
Vice President of Internal Operations of the SA, Pedro da Silveira, called Cornell a “flagship progressive school,” to which other sponsors added that Cornell should follow its Ivy League peers in giving women this “fundamental right” in the same way they followed Cornell in women’s admissions.
The sponsors and PPGA, in conjunction with Cornell Health, organized a Qualtrics survey to gauge support for contraceptive vending machines. The third question of the survey asked whether respondents would consider accessing emergency contraception, either for themselves or someone else, in the future. Over 500 of the 711 respondents “strongly agreed” to the question. The data collected suggests that there is a clear demand for emergency contraceptives.
The initial plan for the initiative is to launch a pilot program with vending machines already on campus. The pilot program would include stocking 1-2 vending machines with Plan B type contraceptives available for purchase.
Noyes Community Center on West Campus and Robert Purcell Community Center on North Campus are the two locations suggested by the plan. Both are to be accessible 24 hours along with a promised 4-hour maintenance of the machines per week to keep products available.
Cornell Health already sells emergency contraceptives to students. The generic Plan B is $10 while Plan B One-step is closer to $50. The vending machines would lower costs to students by supplying the $10 generic. But in addition to emergency contraceptives, the pilot program will also distribute other products, such as tampons, condoms, Advil, Tylenol, Benadryl, Pepto-Bismol, Melatonin, etc.
The sponsors of the bill say there is a grant to fund the initiative. Further details about who approved the grant are forthcoming, but Cornell Health itself, by the sponsors’ description, is invested in the longevity of the program.
The SA’s Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion Michelle Song ’24 suggested to the sponsors that Big Red Bucks ought to be available for use. The sponsors responded that they are looking at all types of payment, including cash, card, Apple Pay, and even Bursar Account charges.
The resolution passed unanimously with thunderous applause.
Concerns with the program include giving minors access to medication without any identification checks. If the program includes bursar charges, privacy rights may be violated in doing so.
This resolution is unique if President Pollock approves it within 30 days. If so, it would implicate the Cornell administration in having worked with an advocacy group.
This is a developing story. More facts will be reported as they become available.
Correction: a previous version of this story incorrectly stated Planned Parenthood Generation Action at Cornell’s name.
