Who Should Cover the Cost of Contraception?
July 26, 2000 –Until last week, Jennifer Erickson was just an ordinary pharmacist, working at a drugstore in Seattle. Now, the 26-year-old married woman is the poster girl for women everywhere who have had to plunk down their own money to pay for birth control. On July 19, Erickson, who says she would like to have children some day but is not ready yet, filed suit against her employer, Bartell Drug Co., charging them with sex discrimination for paying for other prescription drugs, but not prescription birth control. Erickson is one of approximately 42 million women in this country who use birth control. Although she has a good job and can afford the more than $300 per year that her prescription birth control pills cost, she doesn’t think she and millions of others should have to pay for them. And neither do plenty of medical professionals and health policy experts. “Contraception is a fundamental part of health care, just like vaccinations,” says David A. Grimes, MD. “It’s good, cost-
