It’s a nightmare on Infirmary Drive – a University student goes to the Student Health Center for birth control, only to be denied by a worker who refuses to fill the prescription because of personal religious beliefs.
For now, this is merely a bad dream. But depending on the Supreme Court’s decision after hearing those who are speaking out against the Affordable Care Act’s birth control mandate, it could become a reality.
The Affordable Care Act’s birth control mandate requires employers who offer health care to cover all FDA approved contraceptives at no extra charge. Without this mandate, employers can choose which types of birth control and contraceptives their employees have access to.
Companies whose owners claim the birth control mandate infringes on their personal religious freedoms are arguing that they should not be required to provide birth control to their female employees.
I honestly don’t believe these companies want to control their employees’ lives. I do believe there are misconceptions surrounding birth control and emergency contraceptives that lead to the belief that religious freedom belongs in the health care mandate.
Birth control pills rely on hormones and hormone manipulation to prevent pregnancies. The most popular hormones are estrogen and progestin. These can either keep eggs from leaving the ovaries, which stops them from joining with sperm, or making the cervical mucus thicker, which keeps sperm from reaching the eggs.
Keep in mind that the pill is just one of many birth control options. IUD (intrauterine devices), patches, diaphragms and shots are just a few options, which range in effectiveness and efficiency. There are resources available at the Student Health Center to figure out which birth control method would be right for you.
Another critical misconception being heard by the Supreme Court is pills such as Plan B are abortion pills.
Drugs that lower the risk of pregnancy do so in one of three ways: killing sperm after ejaculation, preventing the fertilized egg from implanting in the uterus or preventing or delaying the release of the egg.
Levonorgestrel, the main emergency contraceptive, takes the latter route. Because pregnancy does not happen immediately after sexual intercourse, there is a window in which the pregnancy can still be prevented.
It can take up to six days for the sperm and egg to join and form a fertilized egg, and still up to 10 days after that for the fertilized egg to implant into the lining of the uterus. About two weeks after sexual intercourse, the fetus begins to develop, and the woman is considered pregnant.
There is a reason Levonorgestrel has been dubbed the “Morning After Pill.” Once the fertilized egg implants, it has no effect on the pregnant mother or the fetus.
In situations in which condoms break or someone forgets to take birth control pills, emergency contraceptives provide relief for those who desperately do not want a child. They are not meant to be used as a birth control method.
It’s simple — if birth control, emergency contraceptives or having sex are against your religious beliefs, then don’t participate in them.
But if a worker at a health center or an employer does not understand the basic biology of birth control and emergency contraceptives, I would advise you to seek other health care providers.