by Mandy Cox
If we remove contraceptives from our health benefits, are we abandoning women?
Real answer for real health issues
It is all too common that a woman at some point in her life will experience problems that bring her to the OBGYN office looking for answers. With the common practice of prescribing the birth control pill to treat symptoms a woman experiences, the idea of a health plan not covering contraceptives can, at first glance, seem to abandon women to her health problems.
As an employer, you want to ensure that your employees have access to quality care through their benefits plan. If you remove contraceptives, such as the hormonal birth control, intrauterine devices (IUD), or sterilization, you may be asking what help is available for your employees or their daughters who are experiencing gynaecological health issues?
Understanding the problems
First, it is helpful to understand the sources of these health issues. Women experience these reproductive health issues for a variety of reasons. The underlying causes generally relate to hormonal issues or organic (physical) problems. These underlying issues can cause a variety of symptoms that a woman will often identify herself, some of them being quite severe.
Second, does the use of contraceptives treat these underlying root causes or just the symptoms? Contraceptives can treat the symptoms that a woman is experiencing with varying levels of success. The use of a contraceptive can decrease pain or unusual bleeding, and the woman may experience “cycles” that mimic normal health. However, the underlying causes of the symptoms are not addressed with the use of contraceptives. The best way to know that this is true is that when the woman discontinues the use of the contraceptives, the original problems return, often worse than before. The common practice of prescribing contraceptives as a first step to treat symptoms can give the impression that it is the best or only treatment.
Finding solutions
What does a woman have access to if the health plan does not cover contraceptives? Women have access to all diagnostic tools to evaluate the underlying causes of her health issues. Hormone evaluation, ultrasound, STI testing, and surgical evaluation are all covered on health plans. These tools are the best means for evaluating the sources of the symptoms a woman is experiencing. Contraceptives simply cover up these symptoms and give the appearance of health. Whereas these evaluation tools look at symptoms as clues to indicate that there are underlying issues that should be treated.
Once the woman receives a true diagnostic evaluation, treatments that address the underlying issues can begin. These treatments are also covered on health plans, including hormonal support, biopsy, STI treatment, ovarian evaluation, and surgical treatment.
The Pill – is it always wrong?
The use of hormonal contraceptives could be moral, if the intention of the woman is not the contraceptive function, but the relief of symptoms. A hysterectomy or oophorectomy can also be morally licit, if the intention is not the sterilization effect, but the treatment of a gynecological health issue. Many women, especially married women or women who do not desire artificial hormones, may still reject the use of contraceptives, even when they are not considered immoral.
Your employees deserve the best
When Catholic employers remove contraceptives, abortifacients, sterilization, and their related counseling from their plans, they are not abandoning women. In fact, their plans cover the evaluation and treatments that women deserve. Plans that remove immoral benefits may in fact raise questions that should be answered, not simply covered up.
Why am I experiencing these symptoms and what are their causes?
How can I receive true treatment for my underlying issues, not just the relief of symptoms?
Women deserve better care. Catholic employers have the opportunity to educate women on what their benefit plans do cover, leading to a clear diagnosis and effective treatment for the issues they are experiencing.
Catholic Healthcare – true solutions
Jane was a 19-year-old college freshman. Her mother passed away from breast cancer at the age of 38, just a few years before Jane entered college. During Jane’s late high school years, she began experiencing extremely painful cycles. She was missing classes due to the extreme pain she was experiencing. Desperate to help her, Jane’s father scheduled an appointment. Her OBGYN suggested the birth control pill to alleviate the symptoms. However, Jane’s father refused this option because he knew that the use of hormonal contraceptives increased the risk of breast cancer. They were offered no other options. They were abandoned.
Jane’s father learned about NaProTechnology through his local Catholic parish. He excitedly approached the Creighton Model FertilityCare Practitioner to ask if this might be an option for his daughter.
Jane began charting her cycles. Three short months later, Jane had surgery with one of the 30 fellowship trained NaProTechnology Medical Consultants. The surgeon said Jane’s endometriosis case was the most severe case she had ever seen in a woman this young. The surgery was a success. Jane’s pain was gone, and even more importantly, her fertility was preserved, all without the use of hormonal contraceptives.
Want to learn more about how to navigate conversations with your employees about your plan coverages? Check out our blog on this topic.