Fox News contributor compares birth control to manicures and pedicures

Dear Maddalena,

Don’t let Fox News commentators attack no-cost birth control. Send a message to HHS now to say that all women should have access to contraceptive coverage, regardless of their employer.

It’s just plain insulting. A Fox News contributor from Family PAC Federal compared no-cost birth control to getting manicures and pedicures.¹

But it’s not just right-wing groups that are leading the attack. Rep. Steve King of Iowa spoke out against birth control on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. He said the new no-cost birth-control regulations would make us "a dying civilization."²

Bottom line: we can’t let anti-choice distortions like these go unanswered. Please send your comment to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in support of contraceptive coverage for all women.

Birth control is used by nearly all women in the U.S. In fact, 98 percent of women use birth control at some point in their lives. It’s incredible that, thanks to the Obama administration, expensive copays will be a thing of the past. Women are going to feel the magnitude of HHS’s decision every time they go to the pharmacy counter and pick up their birth control without paying a copay.

It’s such a tremendous leap forward. But there is one piece left undone: certain religious employers may be allowed to opt out of the requirement to cover birth control at no cost.

HHS is accepting comments on this refusal provision, and we have a brief window of time to weigh in. Send a message to HHS now to say that all women should have access to contraceptive coverage, regardless of where they work.

This potential opt-out provision is the last chance for anti-choice activists to weigh in – and you can bet that the smear campaign we’re seeing is part of their strategy. It’s up to us to stop them from turning the public against no-cost birth control.

Here are the facts that we must get out: 98 percent of women use contraception at some point in their lives. Under the health-care law, women can choose the birth-control method that she and her doctor agree works best for her, whether that’s a pill, patch, IUD, or something else, without a copay. When more women use birth control, we should see fewer unintended pregnancies and better health outcomes for women.

It’s up to us to stand up for all women who use birth control, regardless of where they work. Please send your comment to HHS in support of near-universal coverage for contraception.

Thank you for your unending work to improve women’s access to birth control.

My best,

Nancy Keenan
President, NARAL Pro-Choice America

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1 - "Fox ‘Expert’ Blasts Expanding Access To Birth Control: ‘Are We Going To Do Pedicures And Manicures As Well?’," Think Progress, August 2, 2011

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2011/08/02/285620/fox-expert-blasts-expanding-access-to-birth-control-are-we-going-to-do-pedicures-and-manicures-as-well

2 - "Steve King: Covering Birth Control Will Make Us ‘A Dying Civilization’," Talking Points Memo, August 2, 2011

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/08/steve-king-covering-birth-control-will-make-us-a-dying-civilization.php