Republicans and conservative Democrats alike are pushing for language in healthcare reform legislation that would eliminate coverage for abortion services. If they get their way, many women could lose coverage for abortion services. Private insurance could reduce coverage for abortions, and uninsured women will still lack a basic health care service despite having been promised a better quality of life.
According to the Guttmacher Institute, one in three American women will have an abortion by age 45. This means that abortions are a basic health care component. Any health care reform should expand coverage to provide for such a basic need, just as it does for men who require Viagra to maintain an erection.
The burden to raise unwanted children will inevitably fall on low-income women who are four times as likely to have an unintended pregnancy and five times as likely to have an unintended birth as their high-income female counterparts. We have a chance to prevent this disparate impact from happening.
Call Congress today and demand that abortion services are included in any health care reform measure. Go to http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm to find your state Congressional Office’s telephone number.
About Desiree T. Washington: Desiree is a licensed attorney, arm-chair historian, and concerned citizen of the world aiming to help spread important breaking news and commentary regarding politics, the arts, and media that touches everyday people on a visceral level. Desiree may be contacted at contact@popdecay.us or by writing to Popdecay at P.O. Box 691067, Los Angeles, CA 90069.