Healthcare issues

Most New Yorkers, i would assume, would agree with Obama's plans to have health insurance plans cover contraceptives and sterilization, but religious officials don't seem to be on the same page. This mandate was recommended by The National Acadamy of Sciences and Obama decided to put it into place. I say, good thinking, Obama ! what exactly does this law entail? Well, The 2010 health care law says insurers must cover “preventive health services” and cannot charge for them. On Aug. 1, Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of health and human services issued rules that require health plans to cover contraceptive drugs and devices and sterilization procedures, among other services.

In order to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases amongst other things, I think it's important that the people have access to it in an unlimited quantity so that way there is less room for excuses. There are other arguments to this though, and they come in the form of religious matters. There have been a great amount of protest by religious- affiliated groups such as Churches, charities, school, universities, etc concerning the exemption to the plans. this is infuriating democrats in congress for the main reason that they came such a long way in trying to do what they see as something "positive" for the people, only to get shut down.

Apparently there have been exemptions that have been put into place because of the concerns brought to the attention of Congress, but it doesn't seem to be substantial enough to make a difference. Robert Pear of the New York Times writes Churches may already qualify for an exemption. The proposal being weighed by the White House would expand the exemption to many universities, hospitals, clinics and other entities associated with religious organizations. The rules already include an exemption for certain “religious employers,” but the exemption is so narrow that some church groups say it is almost meaningless. A religious employer cannot qualify for the exemption if it employs or serves large numbers of people of a different faith, as many Catholic hospitals, universities and social service agencies do.

House members wrote to Obama urgingg him to keep the exemptions as is because of the risks he would be taking in preventing millions of women in need from contraceptives. Pear writes that Representative Diana DeGette, Democrat of Colorado, said the broad exemption was “an outrageous idea.” And Senator Richard Blumenthal, Democrat of Connecticut, said: “There is not a scintilla of legislative direction in the statute that requires the broadened exemption the administration is contemplating. This change would be a reversal of the progress made in favor of reproductive rights when President Obama took office.”

It's apparent that many want to keep the law as is, but in Meeting with Obama and the Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York, it was evident that he wasn't very enthusiastic about this law and expressed his concerns towards it. Pears writes that, in a letter to the administration, the bishops’ conference said the requirement for coverage of contraceptives and sterilization was “an unprecedented attack on religious liberty.” Moreover, the bishops said, “the exemption is directly at odds with the parable of the Good Samaritan, in which Jesus teaches concern and assistance for those in need, regardless of faith differences.”Obama is being very cooperative with religious leaders and trying to understands their views and do the best he can to accommodate their needs. well, it might just play a role in his reelection, smart guy. 

The points made by religious groups are valid based on religious beliefs and deserve to be credited as so, but it's important to realize that in this day and age people use contraceptives and are in great need of them. The world is evolving and I personally think it's important to put aside some of the religious factors that play into such laws. The bible was written long ago and a world like ours wasn't foreseen. Hmmm, does anyone else see a connection to constitution and the fact that our founding fathers weren't able to foresee the advancement of our people today, which means that for our sake we can't take into account every single word written and a few changes need to be made. Just some food for thought. We can agree to disagree or just agree.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/20/us/politics/democrats-urge-obama-to-defend-birth-control-rules.html?ref=politics