Copyright 2000 The Columbus Dispatch
The Columbus
Dispatch
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August 24, 2000, Thursday
SECTION: EDITORIAL & COMMENT, Pg. 16A
LENGTH: 217 words
HEADLINE:
CONTRACEPTIVE COVERAGE COULD WIN VOTES FOR GOP
BODY:
Dispatch reporter Catherine Candisky
wrote in the Aug. 2 article "GOP must prove to women, blacks it wants their
vote'' that the Republican Party is trying hard to sway the women's vote its way
this year. The ending remark stressed that their sincerity will not be gauged by
their town-hall speeches and smart sound bites but by their actions.
It
might be worth noting that the average woman voter this year will have at least
one very important thing in common with others of her sex: She spends more than
the men -- 70 percent more -- in out-of-pocket health care costs.
Why?
Because her health-insurance plan, which probably covers Viagra, still refuses
to cover contraceptives.
The Republican Party has an excellent
opportunity, if not to woo the women's vote, to at least make a sincere effort
by supporting during their campaigns full-contraceptive coverage.
Full
contraceptive coverage will lower medium- and long-term health-care costs for
women and their families, their employers and their insurance companies. Better
access to contraceptives is also proven to reduce abortion rates.
This
means that even anti-choice Republicans can support contraceptive coverage and
perhaps earn a little respect from the female gender this election year.
Tammy J. Miller
Reynoldsburg
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August 24, 2000