Trump’s hypocrisy stinks even from the page.
The here-to-for liberal New Yorker whom deflowered more than
a few young women has now caught religion, decrying the use of public funds, no
matter how paltry, to pay for contraception. This of course, also applies to
starving mothers in Africa, where under the 2018 federal budget, the Trump/Pence
Presidency has also axed the funding of basic women’s healthcare.[1]
The Edict
Trump has approved memos from both Health and Human Services
and the Justice Department to halt the requirement that employers provide birth
control or reproductive rights parity in the administration of the Affordable
Care Act.[2]
The administration intends to exempt any employer from being required to
provide birth control coverage in its group insurance plan. This will of course
impact millions of women and their families adversely. I note that Trump did
not declare a moratorium on Viagra, penile implants, or other accoutrements
deployed by his “base.”
Religion Must Come First
What does he mean when he says, “Religion must come first?”
Does he mean servicemen and women must only act if their orders coincide with
their religious beliefs? What if someone’s religion has different dictates than
his, if religion is first, then what about religious differences? The U.S. is a
multi-theistic nation, which is to say, there is no single religion and this
fact is becoming more pronounced every year.
According to the 2010 United States Census, which is the most current
national census data we have, 57.88% of residents reported they were protestants.
The second largest demographic at 21.87%, were those without any religious affiliation,
the nonbelievers, those who associate their belief systems with either atheism
or agnosticism. And in third place, despite all the marketing, were Catholics
at 19.63%.[3]
Growing religious minorities include Muslim, Buddhist, and Hindu followers,
with the national census identifying forty-three religions in the nation. And
let’s not forget Judaism. My only response is the same one I had in 2013, “Given
this disparity of beliefs, it would seem religion is not a sound method to cast
social policy for such a diverse nation’s healthcare delivery.”[4] A
social policy that reflects science and evidence in the allocation of public
resources may result in better health care for us all.
The Courts
Of course, his grandstanding will not hold up in courts and
will be found unconstitutional and discriminatory toward women. How sad, that
Trump is so desperate for approval he just assured his unelectable status.
What Women Can Do
First, there are more of us than there are of them, the repugnant
Trump team, so act with your voice and your wallet. Contact your elected
officials and let them know how unconscionable it is to deny women access to
basic healthcare. Also, when you are offered a job, ask the employer if their
medical insurance policy covers birth control, and if it doesn’t, don’t
work there. If an employer isn’t willing to share their employee benefits
policy with you a job candidate, then you don’t want to work there. Refuse to
frequent businesses which support policies which treat women as chattel or
second-class citizens. Do not send your children to schools which refuse to
provide basic healthcare for their teachers.
Frequent healthcare facilities where treatment is not based on someone
else’s religion, but on what is best for the patient. Make your voices heard,
loud and proud!
This is the healthpolicymaven signing off encouraging you
NOT to sign generic consent documents when you approve a health treatment. Be
sure to indicate that which you do consent and that for which you do not. This
includes approving in-network providers, end-of-life treatment protocols, and women’s
health procedures. For more information on how to make your preferences clear,
do read, “An American Sickness-How Healthcare Became Big Business and How We
Can Take It Back,” by Dr. Elizabeth Rosenthal. [5]
[1]
International Women’s Health Coalition, Trump’s 2018 Budget Wages War on Women,
May 31, 2017 https://iwhc.org/2017/05/trumps-2018-budget-wages-war-women/
[2]
Robert Pear, Rebecca R. Ruiz, and Laurie Goodstein, Trump Administration Rolls
Back Birth Control Mandate, October 6, 2017 https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/06/us/politics/trump-contraception-birth-control.html
[3]
U.S. Bureau of the Census, “Table 74. Population in Group Quarters by State
2000 to 2010,” in U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract of the United
States: 2012 (Washington D.C.; U.S. Census Bureau, 2012)
[4]
Roberta Winter, Unraveling U.S. Healthcare-A Personal Guide, Rowman &
Littlefield, 2013, p. 159
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