Contraception Coverage Still Open To Debate

Legislators aren’t ready to require that health insurance plans cover contraceptives for women, but after a two-hour hearing Thursday, proponents of the idea said it’s not going away.

“It’s not an issue that’s over with this vote,” said Jen Ray of the Idaho Women’s Network.

Only one of eight members of the Senate Commerce Committee, Sen. Marguerite McLaughlin, voted in favor of the bill. The Orofino Democrat said, “I think they presented a good case,” while insurance interests who opposed the bill seemed to be interested only in profit.

Sen. Gordon Crow, R-Hayden, chairman of the committee, said, “Although I voted with the majority, I believe the debate has left some questions that the industry needs to answer.”

A bipartisan coalition headed by three female lawmakers told the committee that women spend 68 percent more out of pocket on health care than men during their reproductive years, mainly because insurance doesn’t cover contraception.

But Stephen Lord of the Idaho Association of Health Plans said health maintenance organizations are covering contraceptive care. “This is an issue to which the marketplace is already responding,” he said.

Sen. Robert Lee, R-Rexburg, asked Sen. Betsy Dunklin, D-Boise, one of the bill’s backers, if women age 20 to 40 would be willing to pay higher costs for health insurance because of their contraceptive needs.

Dunklin responded, “Boy, we don’t get pregnant by ourselves.”

Contraception, she said, is “basic health care.”