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This
V-day, let's hope for cheap birth control
This Valentine's Day, although it's men who will
be buying the roses and chocolate, it's women
who will be buying the birth control. Men may
complain about how unfair it is that they are
expected to buy flowers and teddy bears, but the
real responsibility falls to the females.
It's
not wrong that women's reproductive choices fall
on their own shoulders. It's wrong that the process
of obtaining birth control is so hard.
It
is only thanks to Viagra, the cure for the common
erectile dysfunction, that women can even expect
to get birth control covered by their health plans.
Women were pissed when the male impotency drug
was introduced in 1998 and employer health plans
didn't hesitate to cover it. At the same time,
birth control was only covered by a third of health
plans. By 2001, lawsuits had popped up everywhere
and 21 states have instituted mandates. Now, according
to the Alan Guttmacher Institute, 86 percent of
employer-provided health plans cover contraceptives.
While
this development is great, there is a more fundamental
question to be addressed: Why do we even need
a prescription at all?
Gynecologists,
as they shuttle to and from their five-minute
pelvic exams, may argue that the pill is too dangerous
to be bought over the counter. Yet the rare side
effects of the pill, such as blood clotting, can
be predicted by age and health choices, such as
smoking. A warning label would serve just fine.
Liberals,
as they try to determine what is best for the
world, may argue that changing the pill's status
to over the counter will discourage women from
seeing a gynecologist. This may indeed be true,
but many women are already discouraged from seeing
a doctor due to time and cost concerns. When a
medicine becomes non-prescription, the price generally
plummets, making contraceptives more affordable
for those without insurance. Increased access
does more for health than against it.
Conservatives,
as they condemn SpongeBob, may argue that easy
access to the pill will encourage sex without
the purpose of procreation. Well, yes, that's
the point. There isn't much anyone can do to stop
conservatives from fretting about the activities
of modern single women. But we can make their
supposedly immoral sex a little safer.
The
United States is way behind in the realm of contraceptives.
Webster students in Thailand stock up on the pill
before they come home, because they can get it
in the local pharmacy for $2. It's as easy as
picking up a pack of gum.
Although
advocacy groups rightfully made a fuss about health
care coverage, it's not just the price of pills
that keeps most women away. It's the lack of convenience.
College students who get their birth control from
Planned Parenthood may have to go to the facility
every month to restock. Since college students
have notoriously packed schedules, missing a trip
is easier than making it.
Last
month, the FDA debated on making the morning-after
pill, known as "Plan B," an over-the-counter-drug.
Allowing women to buy earlier birth control options,
such as the pill, NuvaRing and the patch, seems
like a much simpler option.
As
it stands now, the contraception revolution is
far from over.
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