In several countries with less puritanical views about sex than the United States, female condoms are purchased in bulk and women receive education at the time of distribution. For Ms. Leeper's information, America could use a few more women like Carol Rogers, a physician's assistant at the Philadelphia Health Department who has distributed a million Reality condoms since 1995. Rogers counsels women about the female condom and advocates its use as an alternative contraceptive. Now that's empowerment. I'm an advocate of Reality.
Women can insert it hours before sex.
And it's a compromise for women who want protection and men who refuse to wear a male condom. Unfortunately, Mary Ann Leeper and her Female Health Company can't seem to get the word out. Finally, scientists have begun to acknowledge this and are currently developing new ways for women to protect themselves against sexually transmitted diseases. Currently 47 biopharmaceutical firms and research centers are developing microbicides. Microbicides are products women can put in the vagina before sex to kill HIV and other STDs.