This Republican Congresswoman sure has a funny way of articulating a woman’s perspective…
By Jacqueline Murphy | Dec. 11, 2013, 11:15 a.m.
Category: Birth Control, Health Care Equity
Remember Congresswoman Renee Ellmers (R-NC)? It was little more than a month ago when she attacked Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius at an oversight hearing because the Affordable Care Act includes maternity coverage as part of the women’s preventive health benefits.
Well, she’s at it again. This week, Ellmers, who is also the Chair of the Republican Women’s Policy Committee (an organization responsible for communicating the Republican agenda from a woman's perspective), attacked the Affordable Care Act as a “war on women.” In the weekly Republican address, Ellmers said: “[I]t’s often women who make the healthcare decisions for our families…. If you want to talk about a ‘war on women,’ look no further than this healthcare law….”
But here’s the thing: The women making health care decisions for their families are the same women who were paying up to 150% more in premiums than men before the Affordable Care Act; the same women whose birth control was not necessarily covered and sometimes cost them up to $600 annually; the same women who were faced with only 12% of individual insurance plans offering maternity coverage; and the same women who could watch their children be refused coverage by insurance companies based on a pre-existing condition.
We’re not sure what perspective Ellmers is speaking from, but it certainly isn’t on behalf of the millions of women who have already benefited from Obamacare.
It looks like a few more lessons on how to talk to women are needed by some of the GOP’s own female members….
Tags: Obamacare, Congresswoman Renee Ellmers, Health Care, maternity care
