Rats will officially have better reproductive care than some women in the USA. Naturally, the reactions were both hilarious and depressing. Amid a disproportionate growth of rat population, the New York City (NYC) Council passed a bill that will pilot the use of birth control on the rodents.
“I’m very excited about this,” Councilman Shaun Abreu, who introduced the bill in April, said on September 26.
Highlights
- NYC pilots birth control for rats amid rising rodent population.
- The bill, 'Flaco's Law,' aims to reduce rat reproduction without poison.
- Many women criticize rats having better reproductive care than humans.
- Rats are gaining birth control while humans face barriers in reproductive healthcare.
- NYC's effort to control rats sparks viral reactions on social media.
The fight against rats invading the Big Apple was so challenging, it led to the City Council’s “rat czar” denomination.
Putting out rat poison, as the city has done for decades, “doesn’t get us far,” Abreu said. “When two rats can reproduce 15,000 descendants in a year, you can’t kill your way out of this. You have to shut off the food supply.”
Rats will officially have better reproductive care than some women in the USA
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However, shutting off the food supply has proven itself to be difficult, even if businesses in the city have been required to put their trash in bins since March because garbage is a major source of nourishment for rats, The New York Times reported on September 30.
The new bill, named "Flaco's Law" after the viral Eurasian eagle owl who escaped the Central Park Zoo and tragically died with rat poison in his system, was subsequently introduced.
“I’m not saying rat contraceptives are going to be a magic wand,” Abreu said, “but we should see if they work.”
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The bill proposed a pilot program using a compound that targets ovarian functions in female rats and sperm production in males, The Times reported.
“Over time, this would help make sure that rats can’t reproduce,” Abreu explained. The compound is reportedly sweet, so it should attract rats.
Moreover, the substance is supposed to not be harmful to other animals, which is why the measure became known as Flaco’s law.
The new bill was named "Flaco's Law" after the viral eagle owl who escaped the Central Park Zoo and died due to rat poison
Image credits: Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis
“We saw what happened to Flaco,” Abreu said. “We know there is a better way” to reduce the rat population.
As NYC has prepared itself to sterilize rats, many people, especially American women, have highlighted the fact that rodents will seemingly have better access to birth control than millions of actual human beings.
"No, not rats having better access to reproductive care than most women," a person wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter).
Image credits: manndaraee
Someone else penned: “NYC is now giving rats birth control to limit the population of rodents. What’s next?
“Are they only going to give welfare assistance to the rats if the male rat doesn’t live at home with the family, which further perpetuates the stereotype of single-mom rat home families?
“Why are my tax dollars funding rat contraceptions anyway?”
The fight against rats invading the Big Apple was so challenging, it led to the City Council’s “rat czar” denomination
Image credits: John Sandoy/stock.adobe.com
A handful of reactions have gone viral, such as an X post that read: "Free birth control to rats before humans is so on par.”
While the US Affordable Care Act requires insurers to cover approved forms of contraception for free, many newer contraceptives aren't on that list, Buzzfeed reported on Wednesday (October 2).
American insurance plans are also not required to cover over-the-counter contraception, including the emergency pill unless the patient has a prescription.
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Additionally, plans do not need to cover drugs to induce abortions and male reproductive care, like vasectomies, as per Buzzfeed. As a result, birth control is still inaccessible and costly for many Americans.
As rats have now gained birth control access – for both sexes – millions of people born with female reproductive organs have been losing their access in the US.
According to one study, about 1 in 3 adult women who have ever sought a prescription for birth control in the US experienced access barriers.
American women have highlighted the fact that rodents will seemingly have better access to birth control
Image credits: RPOIII
Image credits: MICHAEL CHIARA/Unsplash
Approximately 64 million women, or people born with female reproductive organs of reproductive age (15-49 years) live in the US.
As of 2023, around 25 million of this group of people reside in states with restrictive abortion laws or complete bans following the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade.
This ruling gave states the power to regulate or ban abortions, significantly impacting access to abortion for women across the country.
The new bill continued to ignite heated reactions
