Judge Temporarily Blocks Trump Administration’s Birth-Control Rule

[cow451]

That old liberal chestnut.

Truth hurts, doesn’t it? I’ve worked in healthcare forty years and have seen it up close.

 

[Hank77]

Hope the Trump ruling is upheld. The government shouldn't force citizens to violate their consciences.

Who in say AT&T could make a decision about birth control based on religious objection?

 

[Hank77]

Why should an employer be required to pay for contraception for anyone?

The same reason they pay for other prescriptions, like little blue pills?

 

[jayem]

Covering birth control for all employees when only a few are actually females who want to prevent pregnancy doesn't make sense. Insurance doesn't cover birth control for men (condoms). Children don't need it. Menopausal women don't need it. Women who are not sexually active don't need it. Women who want to get pregnant don't need it. But the employers pay for everyone to have this coverage. Why?

Come on. You must know how insurance premiums are set. There is statistical data over many years showing that a certain percentage of female employees, of a certain age range, will use contraceptives for a certain amount of time. That will determine what portion of the premium pays for that benefit. That's what actuarial science does. And the contraceptive mandate isn't unlimited. The benefit can be restricted to prescriptions obtained from in-network providers. And an employer group plan can establish tiers of preferred brands, and require prior authorization for certain products. Contraceptives are subject to the same medical management as other pharmacy benefits.

And BTW, what any health insurance plan covers is set by state laws. It's been that way since the 1940s. And ACA really didn't change that, with the exception of about a dozen evidence-based preventive services (one of which is use of contraceptives.) Even before ACA, something like 28 states required all health insurance plans sold within their borders to cover contraceptives. And some (I think TX was one) required no cost sharing. In fact, the ACA mandate was based on what some states already required.

If you have the time and inclination, here's a good article from Kaiser on the birth control benefit.

Private Insurance Coverage of Contraception

And here's a summary of how the preventive services benefits for women were determined. It was the work of the Institute of Medicine (part of the National Academy of Sciences. Which is a private, non-governmental academic organization.) And it was based on the medical literature. Not on political ideology.

https://www.nap.edu/resource/13181/reportbrief.pdf

 

[HereIStand]

Who in say AT&T could make a decision about birth control based on religious objection?

Good question. Maybe the same people in the company who decided that company provided insurances plans could cover them, as well as abortions presumably.

 

[Hank77]

I do not know if you have been around with me in debates, but I do not believe that insurance should be REQUIRED to cover anything, moreover I certainly do not feel they should be required to pay for something that for many not all, but for many people could be handled by self-control.

This is not about insurance companies being required to cover them, it's about employers being required to cover them, if they CHOOSE cover other prescription meds.

So if an employer chooses to provide their employees with insurance that covers prescriptions they cannot choose to not cover this prescription.

 

[Hank77]

Good question. Maybe the same people in the company who decided that company provided insurances plans could cover them, as well as abortions presumably.

Who would that be? It isn't one person or even two. So who's conscience would come into play? What about when the ones who chose the policy leave the company, do new consciences come into play?

 

[cow451]

Come on. You must know how insurance premiums are set. There is statistical data over many years showing that a certain percentage of female employees, of a certain age range, will use contraceptives for a certain amount of time. That will determine what portion of the premium pays for that benefit. That's what actuarial science does. And the contraceptive mandate isn't unlimited. The benefit can be restricted to prescriptions obtained from in-network providers. And an employer group plan can establish tiers of preferred brands, and require prior authorization for certain products. Contraceptives are subject to the same medical management as other pharmacy benefits.

And BTW, what any health insurance plan covers is set by state laws. It's been that way since the 1940s. And ACA really didn't change that, with the exception of about a dozen evidence-based preventive services (one of which is use of contraceptives.) Even before ACA, something like 28 states required all health insurance plans sold within their borders to cover contraceptives. And some (I think TX was one) required no cost sharing. In fact, the ACA mandate was based on what some states already required.

If you have the time and inclination, here's a good article from Kaiser on the birth control benefit.

Private Insurance Coverage of Contraception

And here's a summary of how the preventive services benefits for women were determined. It was the work of the Institute of Medicine (part of the National Academy of Sciences. Which is a private, non-governmental academic organization.) And it was based on the medical literature. Not on political ideology.

https://www.nap.edu/resource/13181/reportbrief.pdf

Way too many facts. Boring.

 

[Hank77]

Why should I be required to buy an insurance program that covers birth control if I don't need prescription birth control?

Why should I be required to buy an insurance program that covers high cholesterol meds. when I don't need them?

 

[HereIStand]

Who would that be? It isn't one person or even two. So who's conscience would come into play? What about when the ones who chose the policy leave the company, do new consciences come into play?

No one person decides everything at AT&T or most large organizations of any type. Conscience can be individual or corporate. Evangelicals left mainline denominations because they could not longer stay in good conscience. It wasn't because one person made a decision in a mainline denomination.

 

[Hank77]

How many times has a women gave birth to a baby. If she get's health insurance for that night mare Why shouldn't I get health care to prevent that night mare (pregnancy), from my job? Why don't employers keep their big fat nose out of my private business? And stop trying to exclude BC.

Most of them don't. When they hire and train a good employee they would rather not have her getting pregnant. In the olden days that was one of the reasons businesses gave for not hiring women, they might get pregnant. Birth control has helped women move into the work force in a serious way.

 

[Hank77]

No one person decides everything at AT&T or most large organizations of any type. Conscience can be individual or corporate.

How can a corporation have a religious conscience if it isn't owned and operated by one person or a family that all hold the same religious belief about something?

 

[HereIStand]

How can a corporation have a religious conscience if it isn't owned and operated by one person or a family that all hold the same religious belief about something?

As stated, conscience goes beyond the beliefs of one individual. It isn't necessary to share the same religious beliefs with another person in order to object to the same things. Catholics and Protestants work together on pro-life issues.

 

[TLK Valentine]

That old liberal chestnut.

I think the word you're looking for is "truth."

 

[TLK Valentine]

As stated, conscience goes beyond the beliefs of one individual. It isn't necessary to share the same religious beliefs with another person in order to object to the same things. Catholics and Protestants work together on pro-life issues.

So in the case of a corporation, an artificial entity, who decided what the religious beliefs are? Is it up to the CEO, or do the shareholders get a say?

 

[szechuan]

Covering birth control for all employees when only a few are actually females who want to prevent pregnancy doesn't make sense.

No it completely makes sense. Insurance should cover everything including the Medicinal use of Birth Control. Birth Control is preventative medicine.

 

[szechuan]

Interesting irony with this stuff...

The two things that reduce abortions the most are contraception access for lower income individuals, and comprehensive sex education. (in fact, when those two factors are combined, it's shown to reduce abortion rates by nearly 50%)

Religious conservatives claim to be the most highly opposed to abortion.

They're also the same ones who are the most highly opposed to the two measures that have been shown to be the most effective in reducing the number of abortions.

The Irony. Hence Red States usually have higher birth rates in PopRatios.

Babies are expensive, if it takes the government or company to handout Contraception to make life easier then so be it. It's much more affordable for the state and country and easier to handle and mandate with Insurance.

 

[szechuan]

You mean if the government doesn't mandate that insurance pay for birth control, women are too stupid to be able to buy it for themselves ... along with shoes? For years before Obama care, women figured how not to stay barefoot and pregnant...I suspect that they will figure it out again if the government allows business to not pay for that coverage for all their employees.

Women aren't too stupid, it's called ACCESSIBILITY and AFFORDABILITY. Some things Republicans don't like when it comes to healthcare.

 

[CRAZY_CAT_WOMAN]

Do you really believe that pregnancy makes women incapable of controlling their own lives?

I don't want to get pregnant and my insurance should cover that nightmare. I don't give a dam about whether or not a pregnant women can or can not control their pregnancy. That's their business. I have to pay into insurance, which includes the high price of pregnancy. Why shouldn't I get BC?

 

[szechuan]

I don't want to get pregnant and my insurance should cover that nightmare. I don't give a dam about whether or not a pregnant women can or can not control their pregnancy. That's their business. I have to pay into insurance, which includes the high price of pregnancy. Why shouldn't I get BC?

Don't have sex. Practice Abstinence like Rick Perry and teach that in Texas schools like he did because it works so well.

The the Republicans seem to want you to make it harder to practice SAFE SEX like usual. Unless some of them turn into Sexual Deviants because they practice "Abstinence" all too hard and joined Fox News, but that's another story.