Under New York State's law mandating insurance coverage for contraception, Fordham was able to accept that religiously-affiliated entities that want to sell products in the marketplace like insurance and federally-subsidized education must meet the same quality standards as non-religious organizations. Unfortunately, despite state law, Fordham still fails to guarantee access to affordable contraception.
As I have watched national media coverage of this debate, it has been heartbreaking, frankly, to see women's health treated as a political football. When I turn off the TV and look around my campus, I instead see the faces of the women affected, and I have heard more and more of their stories. I am here to share their voices and ask that you hear them.
For the past two years, the Etter Health Center at Shippensburg University, a small-town Pennsylvania school, has provided access to a vending machine that dispenses Plan B One-Step® (among other health products) to students at a cost of $25. While politicians and political elites continue to get their knickers in a twist over contraception, it is heartening to see some public health experts who just get it.
Fighting a non-existent war on religion Senators introduce "Religious Freedom Restoration Act" (RFRA) and consciousness clause amendments. The casualties of this non-existent war could be just about everyone.
A report released today details how the public health emergency in eastern Burma continues to undermine the health and well being of millions of people affected by decades of war. Women in eastern Burma face the worst pregnancy outcomes anywhere in Asia, and access to contraception is virtually nonexistent.
Those of us who revere the constitution and the individual right to exercise freedom of religion enabled by the separation of church and state must stop the mass media procession that is now engaged in a responsive reading from the archbishop’s hymnal. These sounds you hear are not the chimes of freedom.
It seems that no reproductive justice victory can stand free of assault by the anti-choice set. On Monday, January 30, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla) introduced legislation that would overturn the Department of Health and Human Services mandate requiring religiously-affiliated organizations to provide free birth control with their employee health plan packages.
