Shit just got real. And reality got a lot shittier
Early last Friday supporters of abortion rights, contraceptive rights, and health care in general got a 2 a.m. wake up call. That’s what time the Senate confirmed the nomination of Rep. Tom Price to be the new head of Health and Human Services. In general, 2 a.m. is not when most of life’s best decisions are made. And this particular one is even MORE likely to lead to unwanted pregnancies. THOUSANDS OF THEM.
As a charter member of LPJL’s series “Sauron’s Army,” we at LPJL introduced you to vaginal irritant, Tom Price–enough times that we’ve exhausted the thesaurus listings for “asshole.” And now we’re down to “pilgarlic.” From his rabid opposition to abortion and birth control to his unrestrained zeal to destroy the Affordable Care Act, Tom Price is the perfect shitstorm when it comes to women’s reproductive rights. That’s not even to mention Price’s ethically-challenged stock trades in pharmaceutical and medical companies that he then introduced legislation to boost.
As opponents of Trump’s cabinet shitlist, LPJL has been done everything we can to try and prevent at least some of these trainwrecks. So far, we’re about 0-for-everything. But in terms of immediate potential effect on women, Tom Price is the clearest and most present danger.
Already, Price is in a position to eliminate the ACA contraceptive mandate that requires employer-sponsored health insurance plans to cover contraceptives and birth control counseling as preventive care at no cost to the insured. And he’s sure to use every slimy method at his disposal to push the now-stalled repeal of the ACA.
In short, you can be certain of two things–that Tom Price as HHS Secretary is going to be a disaster for women’s healthcare… and that he’ll find a way to make a nice profit off of it.
What to do? Let your Congressional reps know that you support both the ACA and the contraceptive mandate. Let them know that you’ll be watching their votes on any attempts to repeal or replace Obamacare. And keep in touch with LPJL for updates on events like our Dirty Dancing For Planned Parenthood Week of Action.
