HIV Prevention and Title X

More than 56,000 new cases of HIV are diagnosed every year; the number of new HIV infections in Minnesota rose 25 percent in 2009. This increase brings the number of new HIV cases back to levels seen in the 90's.

According to the Minnesota AIDS project, this dramatic increase in HIV infections can be linked to the decline of comprehensive sex ed in public schools, a general sense that the risk of contracting HIV is low and the perception that HIV is a manageable disease. These and other social factors have contributed to men ages 15 to 24 seeing the largest increase in HIV cases in Minnesota.

Prevention is the key to saving lives and money. Prevention begins with comprehensive sex education. Young people need to know behaviors that put a person at risk for HIV/STIs and the methods to best prevent exposure. Through Title X funding, Planned Parenthood provided counseling, education and conducted 10,000 HIV tests in Minnesota last year. Unfortunately, Title X funding and other preventative care funding is at risk of being eliminated by the GOP majority in the U.S. House of Representatives. While the U.S. Senate rejected the budget bill removing funding from Planned Parenthood, we still do not have a finalized budget.

Removing funding from preventative health programs is negligent and short-sighted. Public health programs have helped prevent 340,000 babies from being born with HIV. Cutting funding for these programs would have a devastating effect for a generation of children being born with HIV especially when mother to child transmission is easily preventable. Cost to treat one HIV infection is over $25,000 per year, but programs to help cover the costs of these treatments may also be cut pushing the burden onto states. Public Health programs need to be above petty partisan politics, preventing disease and promoting health benefits all.

Obama administration: Birth control is too politically risky

When did birth control become such a political football? I'm not talking about abortion. I'm talking birth control pills; that medicine most women take at some point in their lives to prevent pregnancy. The political fight over birth control access ramped up significantly with the health care reform debate and is back as the committee appointed by members of congress now debate what should or should not be covered as preventative medicine.

If birth control is specified as a preventative, insurance companies will cover the total cost of the prescription (meaning no copay for women).  For many, a copay may not be a big issue. They may not see the importance or impact of providing free birth control to low income women. To those who are barely getting by, a $10-$50 expense per month is significant. A college student making 12K per year (my sister made less than this as a student) per year as a waitress and has a $50/month prescription has to spend 5% of her income. 5% of her income just for birth control. And people wonder why there are so many unplanned pregnancies.

Sadly, the Obama administration seems content to sit back and let the chips fall as they may.
The Nation

Douglas Laube, a veteran ob-gyn and chair of the board of Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health, who attended a fall meeting with White House staff to discuss the issue, described members of the administration as appreciative of the importance of birth control – but also worried. “Nobody in that room disagreed,” said Laube. “It all had to do with the potential political fallout.”

If the GOP, who fights access to family planning at every turn, REALLY cared about reducing the numbers of abortions, they would fight FOR expanded coverage of birth control. We need a leader to stand up and protect women's access to comprehensive health care. Prevention works. Prevention saves money. Prevention saves lives.