Birth control coverage, HIV testing proposed for most health insurance plans excludes men

Submitted by anthony on Wed, 2011-07-20 07:49

Article here. I'm assuming men will not be covered for domestic violence counseling. Last I checked, men also get HIV and would certainly benefit from an annual wellness exam. Excerpt:

'Virtually all health insurance plans could soon be required to offer female patients free coverage of prescription birth control, breast-pump rentals, counseling for domestic violence, and annual wellness exams and HIV tests as a result of recommendations released Tuesday by an independent advisory panel of health experts.

The health-care law adopted last year directed the Obama administration to draw up a list of preventive services for women that all new health plans must cover without deductibles or co-payments. While the guidelines suggested Tuesday by a committee of the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine are not binding, the panel conducted its year-long review at the request of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.'

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I can only assume if all this is offered "free" to women then the insurance companies will need to cover their costs by other means.

I'm no expert on the American health insurance system but common sense tells if wonen aren't going to have to pay up-front for this then insurance costs will go up for everyone - including men.

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Submitted by sirprince on Wed, 2011-07-20 16:20

I am totally against this.

But for all of you not familiar with health care insurance in the USA, woman already pay hirer premiums to cover all the costs of pregnancy, female care, etc. (women of child bearing age pay a much hirer price than males of the same age wether they are planning to have kids or not)

I don't like the government making choices like this and then forcing those choices onto the people. What one person thinks is important, may not be important to another person.

I believe health insurance should be like auto insurance. Each person picks their own type of coverage to fit their own needs.

BTW- breast pump rentals are for women that go back to work after having a baby. This means they have to "pump " at work. Then at a later time feed the milk to the baby (or most likely a caregiver feeds the baby). This makes feeding the baby a two-step process which takes twice as long and diminishes the benefits of breastfeeding.

Employers should not have to pay for the time at work spent "pumping" and if mothers are going to extract milk from their breasts it should go directly into the baby's mouth and be part of nurturing and contact that the baby needs. Not into a bottle, frozen and then later fed to the baby by a stranger.

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Submitted by Kris on Wed, 2011-07-20 17:18

...for the clarification.

Living in the UK I am indeed quite ignorant of the health system in the US. The info is appreciated.

It does seem unfair for women to be forced to pay for things they may well not need. Doesn't this go against the American ideal of freedom of choice and the free market?

Oh and what would any Americans here think of introducing a UK style taxation funded health system into America? I know Obama's reforms don't go anywhere near that, I just wondered what you all thought.

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Submitted by sirprince on Wed, 2011-07-20 17:30

> "Oh and what would any Americans here think of introducing a UK style taxation funded health system into America?"

I don't know enough about health care politics to give an answer, but it sounds like something I would be against.

Also, I do feel like I came down too hard on the "breast pump" issue in my post above. Renting a breast pump so a mother can return to work is one reason for renting, but there are more reasons that are more centered on the best care for the baby. Sometime pumping breast milk is necessary when the baby is underweight, has health problems, and/or in the NIC. The baby is unable to breastfeed and/or the amount of milk the baby gets needs to be accurately measured.

If for some reason mother and baby are unable to breastfeed, pumping ensures that the mother's milk production will continue so they can breastfeed when it becomes possible.

Rental of this equipment should cost the same as renting any other healthcare devise.

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Submitted by Kris on Thu, 2011-07-21 00:42