Last month, the Obama administration and the Department of Health and Human Services announced they will require insurance companies to provide free preventative care for women. Under the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies will fully cover services like mammograms, cervical cancer screenings, domestic violence screenings, and most importantly, contraceptives. This significant change will be effective in August 2011.
Women across the country rely on contraceptives, but it’s evident many can’t afford them. According to Congresswoman Gwen Moore, thirty-six million women in the United States are in need of contraception. More than one third of these women have struggled to cover the cost of all forms of birth control and more than one sixth of them are college-age. With most birth control prescriptions ranging from fifteen dollars to five hundred dollars, it’s no surprise some girls can’t afford it.
Although the guidelines of the Affordable Care Act will not be effective for another year, the law is a huge victory for women. Women’s reproductive rights have always been under attack, but last year, the threats became more frequent and more severe, when several members of Congress rallied to cut funding for places like Planned Parenthood and Fenway Health.
In what some call the “war against women,” it’s comforting to know that President Barack Obama and the Department of Health and Human Services are on our side. As long as a woman is insured, which full-time Emerson College students are required to be, women’s reproductive and preventative health services will be free of charge.
Currently, Emerson College students can visit the Center for Health and Wellness for a consultation to receive a prescription for birth control. Costs will vary until next school year, when the Affordable Care Act will be made effective.