With the up and coming, never ending, Road To the White House, we seem to be harping on some of the same ol’ same ol’ and some new things that we haven’t seen before. Offshore money. Affairs and multiple wives. But then there’s war and drugs and immigrants and technology and the economy and all the usual hot button items. But for the love of all things, why are we talking contraception???
I talk about contraception because I’ve had 2 kids. I don’t want more kids. I loooove my kids but 2 is all I can handle. Two is enough for me. For us. It’s the perfect number. For some people that number is 1. For others it’s 18 (holy hell). But for all of us, or most of us, we make a choice and we stick by that choice. The Duggars are one thing but most of us can’t afford to have a soccer field full of children. And so our options are either give up sex altogether, practice the rythm method (pah-lease) or go to our doctors and get some contraception. Sure there are a couple of surgical options but sometimes that’s not really an “option.” You try and be responsible. You try and make the right choice. For you. For your family. For your lifestyle.
Why oh why is the GOVERNMENT trying to have any say at all about what insurance covers? Should insurance cover birth control? Yes. Absolutely. Does it not cost the insurer less money to cover my contraception that it would for me to have 5 more kids and cover their costs? I mean, why wouldn’t they cover it? Hell, if my husband can’t get an erection, they’re going to cover his meds. And if your religion doesn’t allow for contraception, shouldn’t you be responsible for your own choices and just say “no thank you” to the drugs. I mean, Aetna can OFFER the option, that doesn’t mean you have to take it.
But let’s say I’m a 16 year old girl and my period is so bad that I’m lying on the bathroom floor, vomiting because the cramps are so painful. And let’s say that if I had access to some type of pill that could help control the pain that I had EVERY MONTH, shouldn’t I be able to get that pill? And let’s say that that very magical pill, that could help me, costs so much that my parents have to choose between my pain and putting food on the table because the insurance we have won’t cover that pill BECAUSE that same pill also just happened to be a Birth Control Pill. So sorry daughter o’ mine, love of my life, let me get you a cold washcloth for your head and a bucket for your vomit because the government has said that insurers don’t have to cover Birth Control.
This is 2012. Not 1012. These aren’t Medieval Times. I mean, women can even vote now yet they can’t get coverage for pills for their own bodies. Why can’t I just make my own choices about myself?
I’m not sure I like like the way you worded “they’re GOING to cover” my meds. I’d prefer something along the lines of “if he were to ever need such meds in the distant future, they would cover them” or something.
I agree that the government shouldn’t have anything to do with this. Yes, perhaps insurance should cover birth control. However, government shouldn’t be telling any private company or entity what it can or can’t cover, sell, provide, etc. The government shouldn’t be telling ANY private entity whatsoever what is must or cannot sell, period. I have a problem with both sides – it’s wrong for the government to tell any private insurance group that it can’t provide birth control for whatever reason. But it’s also wrong for the government to tell a private insurance group that it MUST provide birth control (this usually is the case with specific catholic-related private insurers, whom under the new healthcare bill are technically *required* to provide birth control).
I think the reason we’re talking about it in 2012 is that we are seeing more and more government over-reach in so many areas of our lives.
Abstinence worked for my family! Oh, wait.
We really need to decide how much government we want in our lives.
Right on! You said it all better than I could have. I completely agree. Great post.