Opinion | Health insurance for sex workers in India

Recently the Honorable Supreme Court of India delivered a landmark judgement by recognizing prostitution as a “profession”. The judgement further added that sex workers are entitled to dignity and equal protection under the law. The Court also ordered that the sex workers should not be arrested, penalised, harassed or victimised in raids on brothels since voluntary sex work is not illegal; however, it is still illegal to run brothels.

Now, since prostitution is recognised as a "profession," it is equally important that like any other profession, it also receives insurance coverage. Generally, there are three types of insurance coverage an individual engaged in a profession can opt for – life insurance, health insurance and partial/total permanent disability coverage.

Watch | WION Wideangle | Sex work: Should prostitution be legal?

In India, very few insurers provide life insurance coverage to sex workers and that too with very small sum insured due to the high risk associated with this profession. Perhaps, there is hardly any company which provides health insurance coverage to sex workers. Access to healthcare is a human right for all and is enshrined in Article 25 of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights.

The partial/total permanent disability insurance is a sine qua non for every professional. In partial disability, the injured employee is still able to work but not with the skill and efficiency demonstrated prior to the injury. As a result, the earning capacity of the worker is affected. On the other hand, permanent disability (PD) is any lasting disability from one`s work injury or illness that affects one`s ability to earn a living. Insurance policies provide much-needed relief for both partial as well as total permanent disabilities to an individual.

Also read | India's Supreme Court panel recommends that voluntary sex work is not illegal

In a similar vein, although it may appear strange but true, in the case of sex workers, their body parts, e.g., sex organs form the basis of their income generation. In case the sex organs get damaged due to injury, venereal diseases etc. it would affect their ability to earn a living. Thus, insurance of the body parts becomes essential. If an individual practising any other profession can apply for insurance coverage for loss of income on account of partial/total permanent disability, then why cannot there be similar insurance coverage for sex workers to insure their body parts?

Media reported that celebrities too had done insurance to their body parts, e.g., legs, bum, smile, breasts etc. Rihanna insured her legs for $1 million; Heidi Klum insured her legs for $2 million; Jamie Lee Curtis insured her legs for $ 2.8 million; Tina Turner insured her legs for $ 3.2 million; Michael Flatley insured his legs for $40 million; David Beckham insured his legs for $70 million; Cristiano Ronaldo insured his legs for $ 144 million and Mariah Carey insured her legs for $1 billion.

Also read | As Spain debates abolition of prostitution, here’s a list of countries where it is legal

On the other hand, celebrities who insured their bum include Jennifer Lopez with bum insurance coverage of $300 million; Kylie Minogue insured her bum for $ 5 million. Celebrities who insured their smile include America Ferrara with insurance coverage of $ 10 million and Julia Roberts with coverage of $30 million. Holly Madison and Madonna insured their breasts for insurance coverage of $1 million and $2 million respectively. Also, Bette Davis insured her waist for $28,000; Jimmy Durante insured his nose for $50,000; Keith Richards insured his hands for $1.6 million and Bruce Springsteen insured his vocal cords for $6 million.

Due to social exclusion and stigmatisation of sex workers, insurance coverage of the body parts of sex workers seems a remote possibility and may take ages for such insurance coverage to come up in India. However, the government may initiate necessary steps to provide medical facilities to sex workers. The government may have a provision for health insurance at a subsidised rate for prostitutes to make health facilities affordable and accessible to them.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.).

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