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August 01, 2012 10:34 PM UTC

Being a woman gets easier today

  • 35 Comments
  • by: CCHI

( – promoted by Colorado Pols)


By Ashley Mayo

With all of the politics surrounding the passage and implementation of the Affordable Care Act, it’s easy to lose sight of the ways the law is fundamentally improving health care in Colorado and across America. In our state alone, 291,000 children with pre-existing conditions can no longer be denied coverage, 50,000 young adults have gained insurance by staying on their parents’ plans, and over 200,000 residents will receive rebate checks from insurers who failed to meet the 80/20 rule.

On Aug. 1, Obamacare brings yet another historic reform: insurance companies must cover preventive services for women without cost-sharing.

This provision is great news for both health and gender equity. Women make up just over half the population of the United States, yet they are 29 percent more likely to live in poverty than men, and their salaries are an average of 23 percent lower. These disparities are rooted in complex social problems, but the ACA’s new preventive health provisions will provide some relief for the more than 45 million American women, including 20 million with private insurance and 25 million with Medicaid, who will soon gain access to copay-free preventive care.

The seven newly covered services span a wide range of health issues. Effective Aug. 1, women will have access to the following services without co-pays:

  • Well-woman visits: At these visits, women receive all necessary preventive services, like Pap smears and breast exams, so that health issues can be prevented or identified and treated in early stages. They also get the chance to actually talk with their providers, helping them make informed and empowered decisions about their own health. Well-woman visits save lives; the introduction of the Pap smear as routine care has reduced the cervical cancer death rate among American women by over 60 percent.
  • Breastfeeding supplies and support: Pregnant and post-partum women will have access to comprehensive lactation support and counseling, as well as breastfeeding equipment. Breastfeeding is beneficial to both maternal and infant health. In fact, research suggests that if 90 percent of women breastfed exclusively for 6 months, 1,000 infant deaths could be prevented. However, nursing supplies and breast pumps can cost up to $1,000. These costs will no longer prevent women from breastfeeding their children.
  • HPV DNA Testing: HPV is a sexually transmitted virus that causes genital warts and cervical cancer. While the Pap Smear, a test given at annual well-woman visits, identifies the virus, women over age 30 will have access to the more advanced HPV DNA test once every three years. The HPV DNA test screens for high cancer-risk HPV strains, and is often conducted after an ambiguous Pap result. However, women will have access to this (free) test even if their Pap results are normal. This screening is an especially important preventive measure, as an estimated 20 million Americans are infected with HPV, with 5.5 million new cases reported annually.
  • STI counseling and HIV testing and counseling: Sexually active women will gain access to annual counseling on HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). These sessions have been shown to reduce risky behaviors, yet only 28 percent of women aged 18 to 44 years reported having discussed STIs with their doctor. With copay-free access to testing and counseling, women will be informed and empowered to take control of their own health.
  • Contraception and contraceptive counseling: Women will be eligible to receive all Food and Drug Administration approved contraceptive methods, sterilization procedures and contraceptive counseling. Contraception is basic preventive health care for women. Of women ages 15-44, 99 percent who have ever had sexual intercourse have used at least one form of contraception in their lives. Further, contraception use is critical to appropriate birth spacing and intended pregnancy, which result in improved maternal health and better birth outcomes.
  • Domestic violence screening: All women will qualify for screening and counseling for domestic and interpersonal violence. Approximately 25 percent of women will be affected by domestic violence during their lives, and these screenings help detect abuse earlier, improving safety and health for women and children.
  • Gestational diabetes testing: All women who are 24 to 28 weeks pregnant, as well as those at high risk for this complication, will have access to gestational diabetes testing. About 18 percent of pregnant women will be affected by the disease, which can result in serious complications for both baby and mother if left untreated.

These preventive services are an investment in not only the health of women, but that of their children and partners as well. There are still many barriers for women to break down, but the ACA’s new provision brings us one step closer to health and gender equality. For the millions of Coloradans who will benefit from this law, that means that being a women just got a little easier.

Ashley Mayo is the strategic engagement fellow at Colorado Consumer Health Initiative.

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35 thoughts on “Being a woman gets easier today”

        1. Yes he does, he wrote about it in his book.

          No he doesn’t, it’s the fault of the Fourth Estate, or whichever estate.

          Yes he does, just check out the National Review Online.

          No he doesn’t — wait, does Obamacare cover whiplash? Asking for a friend here …

  3. I always had to pay for birth control from my 20s through my 40s. This never made sense to me as it would have cost the insurance company a lot more to cover multiple pregnancies, especially since my first was a cesarean.

    But no.  Over all those years with job changes and then going into business for ourselves, meaning insurance changes and finally the worst kind of all, the kind that’s available to the self insured;  expensive, really strict about pre-existing conditions no matter how minor and very high deductible, none ever covered birth control.

    High deductibles also discouraged pricey regular screening for various things.  Our solution was always to avoid routine care and tests as much as possible, not a really great solution. ACA still sucks compared to what a civilized 21st century nation ought to have (universal single payer health care with private insurers to serve up extras) but it’s an improvement over what the GOP wants us to go back to. Baby steps toward an affordable quality health care system like the rest of the civilized world’s better than none.

  4. For those who don’t already know, here in Colorado we are working to establish a statewide healthcare cooperative – owned and operated by the residents of Colorado. This cooperative will expand on the provisions contained in the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, Medicaid and VA benefits – and is truly a win-win for businesses, patients and providers.

    As someone who’s been out of work for far too long (and someone who always depended on – and took for granted – the employer-based health insurance I no longer have, access to healthcare is now often out of reach for months at a time, if it’s accessible at all.

    I am among tens of thousands of Coloradans who are very much at risk of learning about illnesses that, if diagnosed before finding work, will become ‘pre-existing conditions’ and will impact our ability to access healthcare for the rest of our lives. I personally put off having breast lumps examined for fear of them becoming pre-existing conditions. In other instances, I had no access to a doctor and waited until I was so sick I had no choice but to visit the E.R. – costing thousands of dollars for diagnosis, but not treatment.

    I currently have two ‘pending’ medical issues that fall into in the same category of ‘potential pre-existing conditions’. I never in my life dreamed I’d find myself in a position where I was afraid to see a doctor because it would limit my ability to access healthcare in the future. But today that is a very, very real fact of my life – and the lives of tens of thousands of others who are out of work in Colorado.

    Sadly, like many of us – maybe even most of us – I didn’t see the ‘importance’ of healthcare and policies that impact healthcare – until after I was without health insurance – and healthCARE -for an extended period of time.

    I’m very proud to be a part of this effort and we have a real shot at making this affordable healthcare for all for less – a reality in Colorado.

    Please get involved – be a part of making healthcare accessible and affordable for all Coloradans.

    http://www.healthcareforallfor…

    1. Good luck with your job search, too. You’re right on about the CO cooperative initiative. Everyone should support it, and if possible contribute to it. It’s very important.

  5. With free preventive exams for insured women, there is NO excuse not to have a well-woman exam regularly. No woman should die of cervical cancer or lose her fertility to an STD because she didn’t make time for a doctor’s visit. I have two dear friends who have both beaten cervical cancer multiple times, and one of them–as much as I love her–had not been getting her well-woman exams, even after two rounds of cancer. I couldn’t believe it!

    Yes, the exam is embarrassing and a little scary. Leaving your kids without a mother or your parents without a daughter because you didn’t want your parts poked is worse.

    The north Arvada Planned Parenthood location employs a gynecologist named Suri who is very gentle and courteous, and has a great sense of humor. I’ve referred my anxious friend to her, and her fear is gone. Find the right fit with your doctor (no pun intended) and well-woman exams don’t have to be a source of panic.

    1. Simple answer: It’s called insurance.

      We buy insurance in order to cover unexpected events, as well as inevitable health issues that occur as we age. We buy insurance in order to manage the risks we face as life deals unexpected situations.

      We buy insurance also in order to pre-pay regular, ongoing health checkups. This is smart because if we catch a problem early, it is much cheaper to treat.

      In fact, the broader the insurance and the broader the number of insured, the cheaper each insurance policy is. So, at the moment 15% or more Coloradoans are uninsured, meaning that they sometimes show up at emergency rooms for expensive treatment. If they can’t pay, then you are paying 15% more on your insurance or hospital bills to cover those people.

      Therefore, Obamacare will save you, ArapaGOP, 15% on your insurance.

      If we had a public option, then we would save 25% . Medicaid only has 5% overhead as compared with private insurance, which has over head on the order of 35%.

    2. Women who have medical insurance.  Free stuff. Who says Republicans have a women issue?  Surely your posts will alleviate those misconceptions.  Uh-oh, I said …conception.  Wash out my ears!

    3. It was legal for insurers to charge us higher premiums for generally unsound reasons until Obamacare came along. Hopefully they’ve saved some of their Sexism Bucks (TM) for the $5 more per month of my (medically necessary) birth control costs they’ll be paying now than they already pay.

    2. It helped me rebuild my core strength after abdominal surgery as a teenager, and riding in general has helped me to maintain a healthy weight and level of fitness throughout my life.

      Therapeutic riding is recognized as helpful for a variety of physical and mental illnesses. Some insurers even cover it for conditions like cerebral palsy, autism, and spinal cord injury.

      However, it’s not especially useful as birth control, except for the part where horses take up so much of your time you can’t find any time for sex…

  8. All of this was either already covered or doesn’t need to be.

    If women still weren’t voting, R’s would have won the Presidency consistently. INstead, we get this whiney nanny state voter. Wh’s dumb idea was that anyway?

    Besides, this election isn’t about women or healthcare, certainly not about women’s healthcare. It’s about the economy and jobs. Until it’s not.

      1. a law  30 times. But the 31st vote was just a waste of time.

        And (jobs, economy) = some function of (jobs, economy)?

        I’m not drunk enough to see that one.

    2. And abortion.  And the Caliphate.  

      Did you know that ensuring health insurance covers, you know, routine health care is just like a sneak attack at dawn killing 2,400+ Americans, launching us into a world war AND the Twin Towers and Pentagon being attacked and 3,000+ more humans being killed…?  Just like it.  

  9. .

    Not a professional economist,

    but it seems that any limited resource –

    such as medical specialist care –

    has to be rationed in some way.  

    With zero copay, the rationing might be done by giving more care to women who are willing to make more appointments and spend more time in the waiting room.

    Folks who work in medicine can tell us whether or not that tends to be the people who need the care the most,

    or people who are lonely and just want to talk to somebody.  

    By charging a nominal fee, perhaps a better balance between need and use can be achieved.  

    And while some may say that care should be unlimited for all, so what ?  It’s not.  

    1. people who are lonely and just want to talk to somebody

      Preventive care is a universal need for all women. Period. So to speak.

      There was a time when you would make rational arguments for conservative principles.

      Those days are long gone.  I do not know what happened to you.  Have you been to see a mental health specialist lately? Perhaps, your comment is very self -revealing, after all.

      people who are lonely and just want to talk to somebody.  

    3. The huge expenses in health care are Insurance overhead (33%), and end of life expenses, not doctors visits for sniffly noses or teeth cleanings.

      You actually WANT people to use preventive care, even if they go “excessively”; it saves a huge amount later on. In fact, high utilization of preventive care is one of the strongest indicators for both healthy populations and cheaper health care overall. States like Minnesota and Vermont have much healthier populations than Mississippi and Texas.

      Not many people are hypochondriacs. Hardly anyone wants to take off work and sit in the waiting room, or go to the dentist more than a couple times per year. I was a parent, so I admit to running my kid to the doctor “just in case”.

      On the other hand, a lot of people would avoid health care due to the burden of a $10, $15 or $50 co-pay. They get sick, and then transmit their disease to us, or else they put treatment off and we end up paying for them at the emergency room.

      Same logic goes for non-citizens and foreign tourists. We WANT them to get preventive health care because sicknesses can get transmitted to citizens and non-citizens alike.

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