Arizona HB 2625 and Contraceptives

Where do you stand?

                                     

Whenever religious beliefs are entwined with women's health issues, disaster is inevitable. HB 2625 will allow businesses who provide their employees health insurance, the option of withholding funds for contraceptives if it counters their religious beliefs.  This is an extremely dangerous bill and has already been passed in the House. Allowing employers and insurers the ability to superimpose their values on the healthcare available to women takes away religious freedom. Coincidentally, this bill was created to protect the religious freedoms of employers and instead infringes on the religious freedoms of employees. If this passes, women all over Arizona will have to hope that their employers have similar religious beliefs or they will be forced to find contraceptives outside of their healthcare plan. Luckily, Planned Parenthood does provide affordable contraceptives. However, for women who lack easy accessibility to Planned Parenthoods or those who cannot financially afford contraceptives outside of their healthcare, will be left with little means to protect themselves. Even if this House Bill does not pass, it is sad that politicians would create legislation that could hurt an important sector of people that they should be serving - Arizona women. I believe that whether or not you personally support the use of contraceptives, everyone has the right over their own body. I am not God, so I have no right to challenge anybody's God-given free will.