Do taxpayers really pay for free birth control?

[Playinghardball]

Found on the Obama Diary

[elleng]

1. NO!

[TBF]

2. Are there copay for Viagra?

Just curious.

[nykym]

3. I believe it is

covered from what I have read thus far.
Interesting though if you think of the Hobby Lobby case now before the Supreme Court.
While HL objects to the morning after pill & IUD's because they create an abortion.
Viagra on the other hand allows an older male to have sex and help create an embryo.
Now I understand the right wings aversion to nixing Viagra.

[TBF]

4. I guess they get points

for consistency. I am very eager to see how they come down in that case. I would have said no-brainer before Citizen's United, but now they seem determined to view corporations as people.

[oldandhappy]

5. But we pay for penis pumps via medicare.

[frazzled]

6. No, and it actually SAVES taxpayers money

Women without birth control are going to have unintended children who are in general poorer and facing more problems in society. It takes a lot of money (ultimately from taxpayers' pockets) to assist with the feeding, education, insurance, and whatnot of these extra citizens.

Family planning is a boon to society, and should not be the province of the well-heeled only (who can afford birth control). Encouraging family planning through government regulations such as requiring insurance companies to cover birth control is just good social policy, and good economic policy.

Equality--including income equality--will also be a long-term benefit of such programs.