Was the Supreme Court right to rule that the Affordable Care Act violated the religio
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No - The ruling allows bosses to impose their religious beliefs on their employees. Besides, the Constitution grants religious freedom to individuals, not corporations.
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Yes - The religious beliefs of company owners take precedence over their employees' right to have access to birth control.
Should religious family-owned companies be required to cover contraceptives under their insurance plans? The high court says no.
I'm curious how you nurses feel about this? Please take a second to vote in our quick poll.
This is a highly political topic, I'd rather not turn this into a hot argumentative subject, so please keep your comments civil :) But please feel free to comment. Thanks
In a 5-4 decision Monday, the Supreme Court allowed a key exemption to the health law's contraception coverage requirements when it ruled that closely held for-profit businesses could assert a religious objection to the Obama administration's regulations. What does it mean? Here are some questions and answers about the case.What did the court's ruling do?
The court's majority said that the for-profit companies that filed suit-Hobby Lobby Stores, a nationwide chain of 500 arts and crafts stores, and Conestoga Wood Specialties, a maker of custom cabinets-didn't have to offer female employeesall Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptivesas part of a package of preventive services that must be covered without copays or deductibles under the law. The companies had argued that several types of contraceptivesviolate their owners' religious beliefs. The ruling also covers a Hobby Lobby subsidiary, the Mardel Christian bookstores.
No, just, you know, quit your job with your testicular cancer and go find other work. Easy peasy! :) Or better yet, go buy your own insurance with that diagnosis.
Or, maybe, let patients and providers work together, and make their own decisions about care, without employers weighing in on the decision.
Shocking that something like this case is acceptable or even considered in this country.
Why is contraception any different than all the other things that employers decide about your health care? Employers, through the policy they choose, decide what kinds of life saving treatments and medications you will receive. Many insurance plans will deny expensive medications and treatments. I would prefer that these things are universally covered and I'll take care of my birth control.
Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.
Further, I know for a fact that the Aurora PP does not do surgical abortion. Only medical. So if any of the PPRM branches were to get an award (which they do NOT, that is complete **** ****), it would be the one in Denver, which does both surgical and medical.
Why is contraception any different than all the other things that employers decide about your health care? Employers, through the policy they choose, decide what kinds of life saving treatments and medications you will receive. Many insurance plans will deny expensive medications and treatments. I would prefer that these things are universally covered and I'll take care of my birth control.
True. This goes back to the fact that we have a for-profit health care system, and that's a whole other topic (about which I'm sure many of us have very strong feelings one way or another!). This was not about choosing an existing health plan that doesn't cover these forms of contraception. This was about eliminating these forms of birth control from an existing plan that otherwise covered them due to a company's religious beliefs.
The fact remains, though, that people fought long and hard for women to have say over their birth control methods. We have a variety available for a reason- no one birth control method is right for everyone. Many of us, myself included, are allergic to latex. Even the substitutes, condom-wise, can be a challenge, as there are fewer varieties on the market, and they don't work for everyone (tried). Diaphragms are latex. Most spermicides are irritating to people like myself, who have very sensitive skin and are prone to infection when using products like this. Many of us who have worked in women's health have had plenty of patients who cannot remember to take a pill every day or even to change a patch or ring. This is where methods like IUDs are ideal.
Plus, as I stated before, no method is 100% effective. I myself got pregnant on the pill, which I was taking exactly as prescribed. Nature decided it wasn't the right time when I was 6 weeks pregnant. Even though I FULLY support a woman's right to choose, I had chosen to keep the baby. Had a condom broken or something along those lines, I'd have wanted to have the choice (and to have it covered) to get emergency contraceptives (which DO NOT abort an established pregnancy).
No company should have the right to impart their ethics on their employees in this manner. I don't support circumcision (though I'd never tell a patient this). Should I deny my staff insurance coverage for this procedure? Absolutely not! It's not my choice! I would never expect the SCOTUS to rule that I can deny coverage for a controversial procedure such as this because I am morally opposed (or even if I opposed for religious reasons).
Also, even at $12/hour, few of these employees can afford to cover the expense of an IUD all at one time. It's unrealistic to expect someone who works in retail to shell out several hundred dollars at once over something like this, when most of them (US) live paycheck-to-paycheck.
That "award" looks like something someone created in MS Word, posted on a bulletin board and took a picture of to stir up controversy.
Seriously. That's about the most fake award ever. If a person has ever spent any amount of time at PP (and I used to volunteer there), they'd know there is nothing on the walls that looks anything like that, and that they certainly don't have "abortion goals" to hit. That's one of the most bogus claims I've ever seen.
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
Seriously. That's about the most fake award ever. If a person has ever spent any amount of time at PP (and I used to volunteer there), they'd know there is nothing on the walls that looks anything like that, and that they certainly don't have "abortion goals" to hit. That's one of the most bogus claims I've ever seen.
But it is reported as truth and believed by "conservatives" across the country who will report it to others as true who will also believe it. Those same people will not question why their beloved media outlet published blatant lies nor will they wonder what other untrue drivel might be in the midst of the reporting.
Seriously. That's about the most fake award ever. If a person has ever spent any amount of time at PP (and I used to volunteer there), they'd know there is nothing on the walls that looks anything like that, and that they certainly don't have "abortion goals" to hit. That's one of the most bogus claims I've ever seen.
Well....the way I read the "award" is that fewer procedures are being performed. I believe they were "awarded" for performing more procedures in 2012 than 2013.....that's what it says.
Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.
Furthermore, PP's primary goal is CONTRACEPTION, not abortion. Only 3% of Planned Parenthood's activities are abortion services. The rest, they're doing STI testing and treatment, contraception, and women's health.
Well....the way I read the "award" is that fewer procedures are being performed. I believe they were "awarded" for performing more procedures in 2012 than 2013.....that's what it says.
The whole thing is bogus and ridiculous.
You're right, that is what it says. It says abortion visits were more in 2012 than they were in 2013. It's most definitely fake.
I support the right of the owners of a company and the provider of employee health care coverage to set limits based on their religious beliefs. I have worked for years with the healthplan administrative arm of a company that provided great health coverage for employees and dependents. We set guidelines in accordance with state and federal guidelines related to employee rights, etc. At the same time, I believe employees have the right to access to contraceptive care. It is their right to make decisions based on their own religious and social responsibilities. They will be accountable for those decisions.
There are programs available to assist in access to medication, such as discount programs, etc. As a case management RN we helped direct our members to these programs. I don't know what is available in all states/communities, but I completely agree with previous posters that American citizens should have options to assist in acquiring necessary health care services that are not provided through employee benefits. Since I know that these programs exist, the requirement seems to be making that information available and assisting in directing people to the appropriate provider/program. Much information is available through pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies.
Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
Sad, isn't it, that case managers will have to help working poor women discover charitable programs to help them cover the cost of their IUDs because their "religious" corporate employer refuses to allow that coverage as a portion of their customary health insurance benefit?
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
Sad, isn't it, that case managers will have to help working poor women discover charitable programs to help them cover the cost of their IUDs because their "religious" corporate employer refuses to allow that coverage as a portion of their customary health insurance benefit?
When I worked for a catholic facility years ago...they did the same thing. I knew it when I went to work there and accepted their terms. The reason that this is a big deal now is to supposedly be ACA compliant these services must be offered.
It was more of a statement to the ACA/Obamacare than anything else. IMHO
Laurie52
218 Posts
Why is contraception any different than all the other things that employers decide about your health care? Employers, through the policy they choose, decide what kinds of life saving treatments and medications you will receive. Many insurance plans will deny expensive medications and treatments. I would prefer that these things are universally covered and I'll take care of my birth control.