Planned Parenthood Advocate

Health care reform and its impact on women

by Shauna
Web Correspondent 
Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund 

In Canada, the number of women employed is now greater than men and America isn't far behind. Massive rounds of layoffs, by which men have been disproportionately impacted in the US, have played a big role in this change. That's an unfortunate reality of the situation, but it also underscores the important role women are going to play in the future of our country’s economy. It also serves to highlight the inequalities between the sexes when it comes to pay and benefits. Men still earn more and women are more likely to work in positions that don't provide benefits such as health insurance.

It is with these facts in mind that it becomes clear how critical a role Health Care Reform will play in the economic recovery. Here's why:

1. Health care reform would enable more women to receive timely and necessary reproductive health care. This access allows women to make the critical family planning decisions that will not only help them enter the workforce but stay there, if they decide to, for as long as they want.

2. Without having to seek positions that offer health insurance, more women can strike out on their own as entrepreneurs. Think of the innovation and economic benefit that could be realized when a person doesn't have to worry about paying for their medication or a doctor's visit.

3. With more women in the workforce, gaps in pay will eventually equalize. With more women working to support their families, greater importance will be placed on pay equity. Not too mention that more women entering the workforce in general will lead to more women in better paying positions and leadership roles.

Despite the current tough economic reality, no one can deny that our country is on the brink of massive changes in the workforce. Health care reform and it's impact on women's access to reproductive health will be critical to our economic recovery.

Study on the Recession and Family Planning Details the Economy's Impact on Women's Health Decisions

(St. Paul) Today, The Guttmacher Institute released a report, A Real-Time Look at the Impact of the Recession on Women’s Family Planning and Pregnancy Decisions. The report examines how women’s contraceptive use and childbearing decisions have been affected by the recession. PPMNS is seeing many of the same trends noted in the report in clinics across our region.
 
Some of the findings of the report include:

•    Nearly half of the women surveyed said they want to delay pregnancy or limit the number of children they have because of the economy.

•    Nearly one in four women reported delaying a gynecological or contraceptive visit because of financial concerns.

•    More than one in four women said they or their partners have lost jobs or health insurance in the last year.

•    Women who are financially worse off were more likely to report changes in contraception use and childbearing decisions, including being more likely to forgo contraception or switch to a long-term contraceptive method in order to save money.

“Too many women can’t afford birth control, and too few families have adequate health insurance coverage.  Planned Parenthood ensures that women, men, and teens have access to reproductive health care services, regardless of income,” said PPMNS spokeswoman Kathi Di Nicola.

Today, one in four women who receives contraceptive care does so at a women’s health center.  One in six women who obtains a Pap test or a pelvic exam does so at a women’s health center, as do one-third of women who receive counseling, testing, or treatment for sexually transmitted infections, including HIV.  

“This basic health care is essential, particularly during difficult economic times, to give women the tools they need to protect and support their families,” Di Nicola said.

“Community health providers like Planned Parenthood serve as a critical entry point into the health care system for tens of thousands of Minnesotans. For many women, the only doctor or nurse they see is the one they visit at a health center like Planned Parenthood,” said Di Nicola.

The vast majority of care — more than 95 percent— offered by PPMNS is preventive and primary.  This includes contraception, routine gynecological exams, breast and cervical cancer screening, and STD/HIV testing.

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CONTACT:
Kathi Di Nicola
Director of Media Relations
(651) 755 - 9557

First Lady to Nation: Women's Health Matters!

 

by Karina
Web Editor
Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund

Recently, First Lady Michelle Obama addressed 140 women’s health advocates to discuss the importance of improving women’s health under health care reform.  She was dead on in summing up the issue of women’s health. Via the Uptake:

In her speech, the First Lady discusses the unique role that women play in ensuring the health of their families.

“…Eight in 10 women, mothers, report that they're the ones responsible for choosing their children's doctor, for getting them to their checkups, for managing that follow-up care. Women are the ones to do it.”

She also points out the tremendous disparities that women face in the health care coverage that they receive.

We all know that women are more likely to work part-time, or to work in small companies or businesses that don't provide any insurance at all. Women are affected because, as we heard, in many states, insurance companies can still discriminate because of gender. And this is still shocking to me. These are the kind of facts that still wake me up at night; that women in this country have been denied coverage because of preexisting conditions like having a C-section or having had a baby. In some states, it is still legal to deny a woman coverage because she's been the victim of domestic violence. And a recent study showed that 25-year-old women are charged up to 45 percent more for insurance than 25-year-old men for the exact same coverage. And as the age goes up, you get to 40, that disparity increases to 48 percent -- 48 percent difference for women for the exact same coverage in this country.

She continues:

But it's not just women without insurance, as we've heard, as we know who are affected. Plenty of women have insurance. But it doesn't cover basic women's health services like maternity care or preventative care like mammograms or pap smears, which we all know we have to have. We can't go without these basic services. But many insurance policies don't even cover it. Or policies cap the amount of coverage that you can receive, as you've heard, or it drops coverage when people get sick and they really need the care. Or maybe people have coverage but they're worried about losing it if they lose their jobs or if they change jobs or if the company changes insurance carriers.

For all of these reasons and more, Planned Parenthood is committed to ensuring that any health care reform package that passes improves women’s health.  As a primary health care provider for many women in our region, we see firsthand the effects this economic downturn is having on women.  Everyday, we encounter women who are delaying care or getting by with the bare minimum or have lost their jobs and insurance coverage. This has got to change. With so many voices out there in this huge and heated debate, Planned Parenthood is an advocate for women’s needs and we will not support any health care reform package that does not include comprehensive reproductive health coverage and confront the disparities that the First Lady addressed.

I am thrilled that our First Lady is speaking out on this crucial issue that is essential to improving the lives of women. She summed up the stakes perfectly:

If we want to achieve true equality for women, if that is our goal; if we want to ensure that women have opportunities that they deserve, if that is our goal; if we want women to be able to care for their families and pursue things that they could never imagine, then we have to reform the system. We have to reform the system. The status quo is unacceptable. It is holding women and families back, and we know it.

We CAN make sure that reform is passed, but we need your help! There are plenty of ways you can get involved—see below for details.

You can read the entire transcript of the First Lady’s speech here.

 

Looking for ways to get involved? 

1.     Tell us your story: Politicians need to hear real stories to understand the importance of improving women's health, so  we are collecting stories! Have you been to Planned Parenthood? Have you received free or affordable birth control? How about an annual exam, STI test, or a cervical cancer screening?  Tell us your story and why Planned Parenthood was an important health care provider for you.

2.    Write a Letter to the Editor: If you've been reading your local newspaper, you've probably noticed that there's an awful lot of crazy things being said about women's health, family planning, birth control, and abortion—- can you help us dispel the misinformation by writing a letter to the editor? Contact Sally at shassell@ppmns.org , so that we can contact you when come across a letter that requires a pro-choice response chock full of some good ol' fashioned facts. Contact Sally.

3.    Email Congress: and tell them that you won’t support health care reform that leaves women worse off than they are now. More info.

VIDEO Inside the President's health care reform rally in Minneapolis

by Karina

Web Editor
Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund

Last week, we shared a video of our own Tim Stanley talking about Planned Parenthood’s role in the health care reform debate at a visibility event the Planned Parenthood Action Fund held outside of the Target Center.  Planned Parenthood supporters had gathered outside President Obama’s health care reform rally to show all who attended that women’s health matters.
 
After the visibility event, many of our supporters headed inside to see President Obama speak and attend the rally.
 
Check out this video, shot from the floor of the Target center, to see what the rally was like!

Thanks to all those who attended!!

You can subscribe to our videos and audio podcasts by subscribing to our podcast in itunes. 

Looking for ways to get involved? 

1.     Tell us your story: Politicians need to hear real stories to understand the importance of improving women's health, so  we are collecting stories! Have you been to Planned Parenthood? Have you received free or affordable birth control? How about an annual exam, STI test, or a cervical cancer screening?  Tell us your story and why Planned Parenthood was an important health care provider for you.

2.    Write a Letter to the Editor: If you've been reading your local newspaper, you've probably noticed that there's an awful lot of crazy things being said about women's health, family planning, birth control, and abortion—- can you help us dispel the misinformation by writing a letter to the editor? Contact Sally at shassell@ppmns.org , so that we can contact you when come across a letter that requires a pro-choice response chock full of some good ol' fashioned facts. Contact Sally.

3.    Email Congress: and tell them that you won’t support health care reform that leaves women worse off than they are now. More info.

 

Poverty Underscores Need for Reform

by Sarah Stoesz
President
Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund

As a safety net provider to some of the region’s most economically vulnerable women and families, I’m always looking for ways to raise awareness of the need for affordable, accessible health care. So when the U.S. Census Bureau released its annual poverty numbers, it presented a natural opportunity to weigh in on the inequities facing many of the women Planned Parenthood serves.

The numbers from the report were grim.

Right here in Minnesota, incomes are dropping and poverty rates are increasing. The Pioneer Press's Jeremy Olson writes: "Household median income in the state dropped from $59,900 in the two-year period ending in 2006 to $57,600 in the two-year period ending in 2008"; meanwhile, the state's poverty rate "increased from 8.1 percent to 9.6 percent during those same periods."

But the picture appears to be worse than the data alone suggests. The Center for American Progress explains that while these numbers are alarming, they may not be a fully accurate depiction of the depth of poverty in Minnesota and across the U.S. Why? The numbers were compiled in 2008 and don’t reflect the current slump in the economy.  Additionally, unemployment has gone up, workers are staying unemployed longer and food stamp requests are growing.

Read the entire story here.

Additionally, many experts say that the federal poverty guidelines are woefully out of date, with measures that have not been adjusted for more than forty years and based solely on food costs. So the true scope of poverty in the U.S. is likely much more profound than even the Census report shows.

Planned Parenthood knows firsthand the effect the economic downturn and job loss have had on women across our region. We see women who have lost jobs and the insurance coverage that they rely upon putting off much- needed health care, women who are worried about being laid off opting for longer-term birth control and scrimping to afford the basic health care that many of us take for granted.

Consider this:

• •    In 2007, one-quarter (25%) of women reported delaying or skipping health care because of cost.
• •    Uninsured women are at least two times more likely than insured women to not fill a prescription due to cost.
• •    Uninsured women are more than twice as likely as those with insurance to have not received a pap test in the last year.

The plain truth is that economic status should not determine a woman’s health or her fate. The disparities experienced by uninsured women are intolerable.

The Census report highlights the need for meaningful health care reform. As Congress prepares to tackle the issue, they must address the needs of women. True health care reform must include access to affordable health care services for all women, including comprehensive reproductive health care, regardless of income. It must include coverage for basic, preventive health care and protections for trusted safety net providers on whom women depend for their care, particularly given the shortage of primary care providers in rural communities.

Health care reform can help level the playing field for women who have been overlooked for too long. Simply put, women must not be left out of the most important public policy discussion of a generation. As a leading provider of health care for women and families, we are committed to making certain their voices are heard.

All women must have access to the health care they need to build healthier, brighter futures regardless of the ability to pay. It’s a core principal that defines Planned Parenthood and drives our work in communities across the region. And it’s a conversation we intend to continue during what may be the most important public policy discussion of our time.