Free Birth Control!

[GeoBQn]

US Department of Health and Human Services secretary Kathleen Sebelius has announced that insurance plans must cover birth control and other women's preventative services for free, without co-pays, starting August 1, 2012.

How much of a gasket do you think the fundies will blow over this? Any reactions from blogs yet?

[OnceModestTwiceShy]

Great news!!!

[Childless]

Amen! It's about time! You would think the pro-lifers would support this measure. The best way to lower the abortion rate is to lower the amount of unwanted pregnancies. It's refreshing to see to see some proactive actions for a change.

[debrand]

Good.

http://www.kdvr.com/news/kwgn-free-birt ... ?track=rss

Pro-Life advocates are furious.

“PLAN B is designed to kill that child. It’s not designed as a contraceptive,†says Bob Enyart, a representative for Colorado Right to Life.

The IoM recommends including all FDA approved emergency contraceptives, including PLAN B, the so-called morning after pill.

“Many millions of women would want to know that the pill they are given by Planned Parenthood is designed to kill the little boy or the little girl,†says Enyart.

The Christian radio talk show host in Denver says he believes the proposal opens the door to free abortion

[ElphabaGalinda]

I wish birth control could be free in Canada. It's getting expensive for me. This is great news:) And fundies with go crazy with this.

[Shina]

Good! :dance:

And of course the fundies are furious. Because all birth control is murder. And abortion is murder. Hell, there's probably some wack-job out there who thinks ovulation without fertilization is murder.

[justakitten]

Wonderful news! Too bad it won't come into effect sooner...birth control is way too expensive right now for us.

[fundifugee]

I did find it pretty ridiculous when I lived in the US that for a healthy 25-year-old woman my health insurance cost THREE TIMES what my male coworker equivalents had to pay, all because I was 'of childbearing age.' Yet they wouldn't cover birth control. Go figure.

[Austin]

Looks like religious employers (I suppose like Catholic Hospitals or all kinds of churches/"ministries") can get away with not offering this to their employees through their health insurance. But otherwise it looks good:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/08/01/fr ... ?hpt=he_c2

[luckylibrarian]

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :dance: :clap:

Will this include IUDs?

ETA: Looks like the judgmental shitheads are already coming out of the woodwork. I hate when people start a judgmental, racist, classist rant with "I am sorry." No, you're not.

A commenter:

I am sorry, but the truth is, the actual majority of these girls/women are not sufering from pain and debilitating female problems. It happens to be a very small populace, that do have actual reproductive problems that involve pain and heavy menstration. The reality is the huge population of slu** !! Can't keep their legs closed, and they refuse to use other types of protection and contraceptives. I refuse to have more of my hard earned money , that I have aquired by being responsible for myself Wasted tax dollars. Spent on yet another lazy, American or illegal, uneducated, welfare mooching, over breeding, ska**. The only reason people like this take no repsonsibility for their own finances, is because the more kids they have, the higher their check goes every month. The more kids they can't afford on their own, that are born, the more help they receive. ?? It is a backwards system and it is taking from hard working Americans!

[Antigone]

This is wicked awesome news for me and hubby he is the poor victim whenever my hormones get a bit crazy.

Ooh. Good question, Lucky! I need to go do some research...

And I'm also curious about the reactions from the fundies :) sorry but I enjoy seeing their heads explode.... :twisted:

[luckylibrarian]

I just looked - it includes everything that is FDA approved, including the IUD. It did just hit me that this is 2011, not 2012 (duh!), but I can put off getting an IUD if it means getting it for free. I hope they drop that religious exemption because that's the biggest load of bullshit ever.

[desertvixen]

Well, the good news for that commenter (and everyone else!) is that the birth control costs will be lower!

It's times like this that I'm happy to be in the military, because I get my BCP and my pregnancy/childbirth experience for free (except for those year long vacations...).

[Austin]

A lot of these people are freaking out and saying the "American taxpayer" will be the ones paying for this. It is my impression (and I haven't looked through it all yet) that this would just require insurance companies to cover BC without a co-pay basically. I am the one that pays for my insurance premium (not the govm't), and currently my co-pay is $10 if I do the mail-order RX thing per month. They'll be raising my rates by way more than the equivalent of that by 8/2012 anyway, so how will the "American taxpayer" (of which I am one) be paying for my bc, exactly?

[liltwinstar]

Seriously? That's awesome! It will only save us $80/year (since I have super good insurance and only pay $20/quarter for my BC), but still...$80 is $80.

I hate the "American Taxpayer" argument too. If anything, it might *slightly* raise insurance rates, although if more people can get on BC (because it's affordable), there might be a reduction in unplanned pregnancies - which in theory would offset the costs of covering BC.

[BlackHawk]

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :dance: :clap:

Will this include IUDs?

ETA: Looks like the judgmental shitheads are already coming out of the woodwork. I hate when people start a judgmental, racist, classist rant with "I am sorry." No, you're not.

A commenter:

Okay.. the bottom half of this rant makes no sense. They doesn't want to have to pay for "welfare mooching" when people have more kids... yet they don't want free birth control? You use birth control to AVOID pregnancy, even I know that! If you don't want to keep paying for "welfare mooching" by having more kids, offer all the free BC you can!

[contrary]

it is good news, and if i understand correctly, also includes durable goods like breast pumps.

but yeah, religious organizations/businesses can opt out of offering it to their employees.

shocked zsu zsu and kendal havent jumped all over this one, yet.

[slickcat79]

Okay.. the bottom half of this rant makes no sense. They doesn't want to have to pay for "welfare mooching" when people have more kids... yet they don't want free birth control? You use birth control to AVOID pregnancy, even I know that! If you don't want to keep paying for "welfare mooching" by having more kids, offer all the free BC you can!

Yeah, this. Either his "hard earned money" goes toward the welfare queens or birth control...but one kind of cancels out the other :?

[Sola]

About time. We've had free contraceptives for years here in the UK.

[raineymott]

Sweetness!! Our insurance as of today is covering all my prenatal stuff too. Too bad the BC stuff won't be until next year. I wonder if it covers condoms too?? haha

[alphaeta08]

Great to hear that it covers IUD's! So, this applies to ALL insurance, right? Even shitty insurance that has, like, a $10,000 deductible? I can definitely wait until next year for my IUD, since my parents vetoed it for costing $900 this year.

[luv2cheer717]

That's awesome! IMO, making birth control more affordable is way overdue.

[PennySycamore]

it is good news, and if i understand correctly, also includes durable goods like breast pumps.

but yeah, religious organizations/businesses can opt out of offering it to their employees.

shocked zsu zsu and kendal havent jumped all over this one, yet.

You understand correctly, contrary. That's going to help so many more babies get their moms' milk. Not all moms need pumps, of course, but for the moms that do, this will be wonderful.

[Rowan]

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :dance: :clap:

Will this include IUDs?

ETA: Looks like the judgmental shitheads are already coming out of the woodwork. I hate when people start a judgmental, racist, classist rant with "I am sorry." No, you're not.

A commenter:

I want to beat that douchenozzle up with a Clue by Four.

I have had sex with one person, over a span of less than 6 months, in the past 12 years (a couple guys before that but there was a long dry spell that was broken and now another dry spell). I have been on hormonal birth control the majority of the time since I was 16 (16 years ago). My cycle is horribly erratic and very heavy. Like two Super Plus in an hour. Hardly a SLUT and so what if I was? That would make me less worthy? Bullshit. A person's value in life is rarely decided in any measure by their sexual activity.

"...the more kids they have, the higher their check goes every month" yet she has an issue with the method to PREVENT this from being made available to the people who could benefit? Fucking hypocrites.

Sorry for the language but I am :angry-fire: over the nerve of that See You Next Tuesday!

[Patsy]

I hear you, Rowan. I'm a lesbian and I'm on the pill. Most of my closest friends who I've discussed it with, who are also on the pill, are virgins. I don't see how anyone could claim that the majority of young people who say they're on it for health actually aren't - it seems pretty obvious to me that they are.