Hilary Swank Sues SAG / AFTRA Health Plan: “It’s Time We Are Treated Fairly”

The two-times Academy Award-winning actress Hilary Swank announced through her verified Instagram account that she was going to sue SAG / AFTRA Health plan, which is set up to “provide health care benefits to eligible participants and their dependents.”

Swank, who claims that the plan did not treat and protect all of their members equally, stated that she was sick of that the way women’s ovarian and cyclical health issues to be treated by insurance companies, and continued:

“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.”

One of the 100 most influential people in the world, Swank added having to deal with the nature of a female health issue was painful enough apart from the coverage and care case. She continued by mentioning her own health issues:

“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.”

Then the actress said that she hoped to be a voice for women suffering from female health issues. And concluded her words as follows:

“I’m suing SAG / AFTRA Healthplan. It’s time we are treated fairly.”

See below to view Swank’s Instagram post.

View this post on Instagram

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