Women currently account for 51% of the overall U.S. population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. To be precise, there were 154,135,120 women and 149,924,604 men in the United States in 2008. We also know that women, more often than not, are responsible for making decisions about their families' health care.
While I think it would be hard to make the leap that 51 percent of the programs and benefits of health reform should be directly targeted toward women, it's not a stretch to argue that health reform should address the health care needs of women and their families. That includes pregnancy planning and prevention.
Unplanned pregnancies are closely linked to a number of negative health, social, and economic consequences. Family planning services--counseling, gynecological care and screenings, prescription drugs and devices, and related outpatient services--are a cost-effective way to make progress on preventing unplanned pregnancy and improving health outcomes for women and families. As such, family planning should be classified as a preventive benefit with the same cost-sharing protections afforded to other designated preventive benefits in any essential benefit package that is created within the context of health reform.
For health reform to work, it has to be meaningful for everyone, including 51 percent of the U.S. population.
I definitely agree that health care reform should definitely include most of what you said above. However, I also think that you implied that abortion should be included in this. I do not think that my tax dollars should have to pay for what I consider the taking of human life. I absolutely think we need to educate and cover contraception and prevent the unplanned pregnancies in the first place. But any health care reform that covers abortion, except in a few rare cases, should not considered