I urge Dr. Joan Holden, the Director of Loyola Wellness Center, and Loyola Chicago President Mark Reed to change the policy preventing the Loyola Chicago Health Center from prescribing oral contraception to students. As a young woman at Loyola my sexual health should be a priority especially considering 68.7% of students identify as women (LUC Student Diversity, 2025). This policy directly hurts these women and all other students affected by reproductive health restrictions.

Loyola Chicago prides itself on the Jesuit principle "Cura Personalis” which means caring for the whole person, yet the student health service is failing to provide comprehensive reproductive care (LUC Jesuit Values, 2025). The health center states that oral contraception prescribed for the sole purpose of pregnancy prevention conflicts with traditional Catholic teachings (LUC FAQs, 2025). This is extremely concerning considering oral contraception protects students capable of becoming pregnant by giving them control over their sex lives through family planning. Since the first oral contraceptive pill was approved in the 1960s, more women have been able to attain college degrees, the gender pay gap has lessened, and women have climbed higher in their fields (Jones, 2024). With 86% of college students reporting having had sex in their life and 60% reporting having sex their first year of college it is imperative that students are provided the contraception necessary to prevent unwanted pregnancy (Snow et al., 2024).

Access to oral contraception gives students control over their lives. It is a basic form of healthcare that any health center ought to offer. Any argument against offering it is an attack on the strides women and other communities impacted by the restriction of reproductive healthcare have made. We must act now and fight for this basic service.

Please sign this petition to show Loyola Chicago leadership how imperative the health center offers oral contraceptive prescriptions and protects the reproductive rights of their students.