Millions stand to lose access to birth control without co-pays

The following post appeared in The Charleston Gazette on Sunday, November  27, 2011 under the title “Attack on birth control latest assault on women’s health.”

Last Wednesday, November 16, The Charleston Gazette ran “Sensible: Birth control blessing,” a pro-birth control, pro-women’s health editorial.  Their timing couldn’t have been better.

The ramping up of attacks on women’s basic reproductive health care, from birth control to cervical cancer immunizations to abortion care, by out-of-touch and extreme politicians is breathtaking in scope and intent.

Take, for example, the issue of birth control as women’s preventive health care.

Earlier this month, Representative Joe Pitts (R-PA) and others in the House pushed their ideological agenda against women’s health care (yes, again) during a House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health hearing in which members of Congress discussed whether or not health insurance plans should have to offer coverage for birth control without co-pays.  One Republican congressman after another expressed opposition to the recent decision by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to require all new health plans to cover birth control and other basic women’s preventive care services with no co-pays.

Then just two weeks ago, Archbishop Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, met with President Obama to press for an expansion of the refusal clause of this provision.  Apparently, the 271 bishops in the conference want any and all religiously affiliated entities—not just churches, which are currently able by law to opt out of the provision—to be able to deny this basic preventive care to their employees.  After the meeting, several news sources cited Dolan’s pleasure, to the astonishment of women’s health and advocacy organizations, at the President’s perceived willingness to compromise.

In fighting to overturn or undermine this important preventive care provision—and one of the most popular benefits of the Affordable Care Act—those opposed to birth control are ignoring the facts.

Birth control use is nearly universal in theUnited States.  Ninety-nine percent of sexually experienced women use birth control at some point in their lives, including 98 percent of sexually experienced Catholic women.  And 34 percent of women voters—including yours truly—have struggled with the cost of prescription birth control at some point in their lives.

Sound science, including recommendations by the respected, nonpartisan Institute of Medicine, demonstrates that birth control usage improves maternal and infant health.  Birth control allows women to plan their pregnancies, and planned, well-spaced pregnancies are healthier than unplanned or mistimed pregnancies.

In considering a “compromise,” President Obama is ignoring the reality.

Seventy-one percent of all American voters and 77 percent of Catholic women voters support the requirement that health plans cover birth control without co-pays.

Expanding the existing refusal clause could mean more than one million people who work at religiously affiliated schools, hospitals, universities and organizations, as well as their dependents, and two million students who attend religiously affiliated colleges and universities would not be privy to the same basic protection in health coverage that the rest of the country is.  All women, no matter where they work or attend college, should have access to birth control.

Expansion of the refusal clause in this manner would amount to the single most damaging refusal provision around birth control that has ever been implemented.  It would create a dangerous precedent that singles out birth control and undermines a fundamental tenet of the Affordable Care Act—that every person in this country deserves a basic standard of health care coverage.  Furthermore, such an expansion would set a standard rivaled only by the refusal provision that President George W. Bush put into place near the end of his administration, one that President Obama rescinded.

The fact is millions of women and families will benefit from improved access to affordable birth control.  Taking away this important new preventive health benefit—one that is rooted in science and medicine, and favored by health advocates, women’s groups and the vast majority of American voters—is simply unacceptable.  And the reality is it’s not only bad policy; it’s bad politics too. 

So why would President Obama ever consider such a move?  Much has been said about the political calculus of this decision.  But what politicians who are opposed to birth control and safe, legal abortion care don’t understand is that my health and reproductive decision-making—and that of my friends, family, neighbors and coworkers—should not be used as a political ploy.  Putting women down by disregarding our health, wellbeing and lives is not the stuff good stump speeches are made of, and attacks on women’s health care do nothing to create jobs, reduce the deficit or improve the economy.

It is time for all of us to say, “Enough is enough.”  It is unacceptable for politicians to disregard women’s health and lives to score political points.  President Obama should reject out-of-step attempts by the GOP, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and other anti-birth control organizations to unfairly deny millions of women access to birth control.

Women are watching, and we won’t let the clock will be rolled back on our health care or the care of those we know and love.

If you haven’t yet taken action to protect access to birth control without co-pays, it’s super easy.  Sign Planned Parenthood’s online petition here and then ask your friends to sign too!  And if you’d like to share a brief comment about why you support access to birth control, you can do so here.  Thank you for all you do!