Cecile Richards: When something is broken, you've just got to fix it
When something is broken, you've just got to fix it
Hey, everyone!
Yesterday I attended a special meeting at the White House to discuss women and health insurance reform. The basic message was that we’ve got to remind folks why we became so dedicated to reforming the health care system — or more particularly, the health insurance system — in the first place. It's not like the unbelievable rise in costs of health care have gone away. In fact given the unemployment rate and widespread loss of insurance coverage, at Planned Parenthood we are seeing so many more women (and men and young people!) who have no coverage at all.
So, as we are all watching with incredulity the screaming people at congressional forums who seem to believe that the White House is somehow plotting to create a socialist state, let us not forget just how broken the system is, especially for women.
Women are charged higher health insurance premiums because — NEWS FLASH — we bear children! Wouldn’t you think we would get a medal instead of higher insurance costs? According to HHS, a 22-year-old woman can be charged one and a half times the premium of a 22-year-old man, a discrepancy that can drastically affect women's health. Women aren’t going to the doctor because they can’t afford it. More than half of women (52 percent) are delaying or avoiding needed care because of cost, compared with 39 percent of men.
Women get the short end of the stick from the insurance industry, so, yes, of course, we want national standards! According to a recent survey by the National Women’s Law Center, the vast majority of individual market health insurance policies don’t even cover maternity care. Not to mention that women are too often blocked from insurance coverage because of pre-existing conditions — including breast cancer and pregnancy!
Women need affordable health care that covers OUR needs — from childbearing to Pap smears to mammograms. Geez, we represent more than half the population here! No wonder we're fighting for real health care change.
If you want to know more, go to http://www.healthreform.go
And if you want to learn more about Planned Parenthood's health reform work and get involved, visit http://www.plannedparentho
Thanks, friends!
— Cecile
Yesterday I attended a special meeting at the White House to discuss women and health insurance reform. The basic message was that we’ve got to remind folks why we became so dedicated to reforming the health care system — or more particularly, the health insurance system — in the first place. It's not like the unbelievable rise in costs of health care have gone away. In fact given the unemployment rate and widespread loss of insurance coverage, at Planned Parenthood we are seeing so many more women (and men and young people!) who have no coverage at all.
So, as we are all watching with incredulity the screaming people at congressional forums who seem to believe that the White House is somehow plotting to create a socialist state, let us not forget just how broken the system is, especially for women.
Women are charged higher health insurance premiums because — NEWS FLASH — we bear children! Wouldn’t you think we would get a medal instead of higher insurance costs? According to HHS, a 22-year-old woman can be charged one and a half times the premium of a 22-year-old man, a discrepancy that can drastically affect women's health. Women aren’t going to the doctor because they can’t afford it. More than half of women (52 percent) are delaying or avoiding needed care because of cost, compared with 39 percent of men.
Women get the short end of the stick from the insurance industry, so, yes, of course, we want national standards! According to a recent survey by the National Women’s Law Center, the vast majority of individual market health insurance policies don’t even cover maternity care. Not to mention that women are too often blocked from insurance coverage because of pre-existing conditions — including breast cancer and pregnancy!
Women need affordable health care that covers OUR needs — from childbearing to Pap smears to mammograms. Geez, we represent more than half the population here! No wonder we're fighting for real health care change.
If you want to know more, go to http://www.healthreform.go
And if you want to learn more about Planned Parenthood's health reform work and get involved, visit http://www.plannedparentho
Thanks, friends!
— Cecile