From not covering maternity care to calling domestic violence a pre-existing condition, insurance companies seem to have written the book on how to turn a buck at the expense of millions of women in America. Now add "rape victim" to the long list of ways in which insurance companies discriminate against women.

The most recent example of this is recounted at Womenstake.org about a rape survivor from Tampa, FL named Chris Turner. When Chris began looking for health insurance after her sexual assault, the insurance companies she contacted told her they would deny coverage to a rape survivor. Chris had described to them a hypothetical rape victim (which was actually her), and told them of being proactive following her assault, by seeking preventative anti-HIV medicated and counseling. Apparently, that was a little too pro-active for insurance companies.

After her rape, Chris had been so afraid that she had been unable to leave her house for some time. Chris had no choice but to seek help. The steps she took to heal after her sexual assault became obstacles to her future health and well-being, and these were cited for reasons why insurance companies refused to insure her.

So what would Chris have had to do in order to not be rejected from receiving coverage after being raped? Get into a time machine and undo this terrible experience that was out of her control? Almost. In order to qualify for insurance coverage at all, Chris would have had to have tested negative for HIV for two to three years, along with completing one to two years of intensive counseling (depending on the specific insurance company and plan). Womenstake.org poses this question:

If Chris, an insurance agent who knows the ins and outs of the insurance market, was unable to obtain health insurance following her assault, what chance do the rest of us have?

Not much. Even when women are able to obtain coverage, they pay up to 48% more for private health insurance than men for the same policies. Insurance company abuse must end.

The health reform bills in Congress ban the use of "pre-existing conditions" to deny care, and eliminate the practice of "gender rating" to charge women more than men. Tell members of Congress this is unacceptable: no one should be denied health care coverage, least of all women who have already endured so much.