Share Your Story: What does birth control without co-pays mean for you?

The provisions of the affordable Health Care Act mean, that my daughter age 21, is unlikely to ever have an unwanted pregnacy, and that her periods, should be much more manageable, on a monthly basis.  It menas I will never have to council my daughter on a horrible decision, caused by an accident.  Female contraception, will not prevent the spread of STD, so her male partner, should still use condoms, to protect them , until she is in a committed and exclusive relationship.  Hopefully in the furture The Affordable Care Act will eventually be expanded, to include vasectomies, for men,  that one time procedure, can save a lot of money spent on contraceptives in the USA. 

My daughter began having heavy, frequent menstral periods in her late teens.  She was becoming anemic and having great difficulty dealing with them.  Her doctor put her on birth control medication which completely alleviated the problem.  She is now in her early twenties and still taking the medication.  She just graduated from college and is starting a new job and not having to pay a co-pay for these meds will be a huge help as she gets started.

I'm the mother of five girls (and three boys)  Both my oldest girls were using planned parenthood for their birth control but I just didn't think about the other three girls.  So my 8 year old daughter was raped.  I don't know wether thie 12 IUDs are available under this new plan but since all three of my youngest daughters have some cognitive disabilities I sure am grateful for planned parenthood helping us that day of the rape and so many days after.

I am 58 years old, so am no longer in need of birth control. That said, what birth control without co-pay means to me is everything. Everything because of my young nieces. Everything because no woman is free unless she has complete, easy access to birth control and abortion on demand with no apology or excuse. Everything because of emergency contraception giving rape survivors their lives back immediately. Everything because of the many other uses for birth control, from acne to unbearable, passing-out cramps. My activism started in the late 60s Chicago, when I marched, counter-protested Operation Rescue—Randall Terry and his rabid followers, and helped with clinic escorts. I have watched the antichoice goings on all these years, and I am very, very frightened by the turn this country has taken in this past year with over 1,000 laws attacking women's reproductive rights. I see it as a conspiracy. Why else would it be happening simultaneously across the nation? I thought we were past this sort of thing, but there are those who will not be happy unless everyone is assimilated into their religion and this country is a theocracy. President Obama and groups like NWLC, Unite Women, NARAL, NOW, are the only things holding us back from that. Imagine if these attacks came with this force when George W. was in office? Imagine now, what it will be like if "those other two" are put in charge? What birth control without co-pay means to me is somebody with power is still fighting like hell for women, and I will fight like hell to back him and to help him get reelected, and I will fight like hell to support these groups in whatever ways I can, and I will fight like hell to keep my nieces safe, and I will fight like hell to make our country a safe place for women.