Street roots
Feb. 17. 2012
Women want health care, not politics
David Greenberg,
Ph.D., is the
president and CEO o f
Planned Parenthood
Columbia Willamette
BY D AVID GREENBERG
lawmakers, of which 135 were enacted. This
was a 75 percent increase over 2009. We are
wo weeks ago, we witnessed what
now witnessing a campaign against women’s
happens when politics is placed ahead
health waged under a politicized banner of
of health care.
“religious freedom” .
The Susan G . Komen for the Cure
Most Americans believe that access to
Foundation allowed right-wing bullies to
birth control is a basic human right.
influence its decision to withdraw funding for
Contraceptive use is nearly universal in the
breast screening services at Planned
United States, with 99 percent of all sexually
Parenthood. Women all over the country were
experienced women and 98 percent of
outraged. More Americans rallied behind
sexually experienced Catholic women using
Planned Parenthood than at any point in our
birth control at some point in their lives. The
organization’s 100-year history. Thankfully,
typical woman spends 30 years trying not to
Komen reversed its decision.
get pregnant.
Last week, led by a carefully coordinated
This is a commonsense issue for women —
plan developed by Roman Catholic bishops,
but not for anti-birth control politicians or the
the political attacks on women’s health care
Catholic bishops. And it’s also an issue of
continued. The Obama administration had
social justice. The cost of birth control is one
decided to include birth control as a part of
reason poor women are more than three
basic, preventive health care meaning that
times as likely to end up pregnant
contraceptives would have to be made
unintentionally as more affluent women.
available to women through their employers’
The Affordable Care Act already included a
health insurance plans, without co-pays or
comprehensive refusal provision: 335,000
deductibles. Under pressure from the
churches and church associations nationwide
bishops, former White House senior adviser
are exempt. What’s at the heart of the
David Axelrod first suggested that President
current political battle is the Catholic-
Obama might reverse his decision to ensure
affiliated health care system, where one in six
that all women, regardless of their employer,
Americans go for health care, and hundreds
have access to birth control. And then the
of thousands of workers are employed. These
President announced that his administration
systems receive hundreds of millions of public
would make an “accommodation” permitting
dollars every year for providing health
employees whose employers refuse to cover
services, and they should not be allowed to
birth control to still receive contraceptives.
refuse services to their own employees, or
He proposed doing this through insurance
any patient who may or may not share their
plans in what are called “side benefits”
religious beliefs.
covered by the insurance companies rather
Efforts to protect birth control coverage
than the employer.
are about the nurses, secretaries, janitorial
Several bills were introduced in Congress
staff and other employees of all faiths who
that would prevent women from getting free
work at universities and hospitals, and don’t
birth control, not just from religious
want to lose their benefits. People don’t want
organizations, but also from any employer
employers cherry-picking what’s covered by
that didn’t want to provide this coverage. The
their health insurance.
Rubio-Manchin Bill would even overturn
This benefit would not require that anyone
Oregon’s 2009 Access to Birth Control Act
personally dispense or use birth control.
that requires Oregon’s insurance plans to
Many Catholic-affiliated hospitals and
cover contraceptives.
universities already provide contraceptive
Confused? That’s what happens when we
coverage to their employees. And religiously-
mix politics and religion with health care.
affiliated insurance companies such as
With all the problems facing us, it is
Providence Health Plan do include
puzzling that access to life-saving cancer
contraceptive coverage in many of their
screening and birth control are occupying so
insurance plans. These institutions are in line
much of our attention. 2011 saw a record
with their supporters, because 58 percent of
number of attacks on reproductive health
Catholics believe that employers should be
care, with more than 1,100 bills introduced by
C O N T R IB U T IN G C O L U M N IS T
T
The Face of Youth Being Arrested in D.C.
By Mike Hastie
You wonder where it is all leading to.
You wonder how much longer the
Police State is going to get away with
beaten by the previous generation of
Americans who said they loved me.
That political incest betrayal took me to
a padded cell nine years after I got back
everything.
The innocence of youth in America is
getting more and more disillusioned
from Vietnam.
When I went back to Vietnam in 1994 to
make amends to the Vietnamese people,
with the future of their lives.
Eventually, that innocent face will turn
to hopeless resentments that will no
I found my soul again.
I followed my path, and it led to the truth.
I was born in America, but my heart is
longer trust any generation that came
before them.
“The Road,”
is becoming more traveled.
America has become the thousand
Vietnamese.
The youth in America will have to find their
way back home, and that path will force them
to become a citizen of the world.
It is the last thing the political elite in America
yard stare.
The U .S . Propaganda State has become
high on everything.
The most profound realization I had when
I came back from Vietnam, was that I was
the enemy in Vietnam.
I was still young then, but that innocent
face I took to Vietnam was battered and
want them to discover.
Betrayal is like having a lifelong mentor turn
on you and become your worst enemy.
That enemy still lives inside of you, and in
order to survive, you have to outgrow the
lies that once defined your life.
Photo by Mike Hastie, taken at a
demonstration near The White House.
required to cover contraception at no cost to
the employee.
It’s simple: All women should have access
to free contraception no matter where they
work or whether they work at all.
This common sense and popular idea
means that millions of women who would
otherwise pay $15 to $50 a month will have
access to affordable birth control, saving
them hundreds of
dollars each year
while allowing
them to plan their
families.
T ills Is a commoasease Issue
In our
lo r wontea — bat aot lo r anti*
community
Planned
b irth control politicians or
Parenthood serves
the Catholic bishops, t a i I l ?s
60,000 patients
also an issue ©I social
each year with
justice« The cost o i b irth
annual exams, pap
tests, breast exams control Is one reason poor
and other life
women are more than three
saving cancer
screening services, times as llfeely I® end up
pregnant unintentionally as
counseling, birth
control, testing and more affluent women.
treatment for
STDs, vasectomy
and early abortion
care. Most patients
coming to our 11
health centers receive services at no charge,
and we have sliding-scale discounts for
everyone. A full list of services and health
center locations are available at www.ppcw.
org or by calling (503) 788-7273.
The Obama accommodation announced last
week seemed like a good compromise.
Women will get birth control, and the Church-
affiliated hospitals and universities won’t have
to pay for it. But the struggle to provide
basic, preventive health care for women isn’t
over. Some members of Congress, most
Republican presidential candidates and the
Catholic bishops are still trying to take away
contraceptives from women.
In our community, people don’t want
politics or religion getting in the way of health
care. For women everywhere, birth control is
basic health care. It shouldn’t be attacked.
And just like cancer screening, it shouldn’t be
politicized.