Health Insurance stirs debate

By NATALIE LOMBARDO
Of The Oakland Press

Now that her son is 2 months old, Christine's Medicaid will be terminated.

As a full-time diagnostic ultrasound student, 36-year-old Christine - who wants to keep her last name anonymous - doesn't desire more children. However, the potential for a surprise pregnancy is a reality for her, as doctor visits and birth control will put a dent in her budget.

But she could be helped by a program that aims to prevent unwanted pregnancies by providing reproductive health care such as contraception to more low-income women in Michigan.

Plan First!, rolled out by Gov. Jennifer Granholm in early July, provides Medicaid to a wider pool of people - up to 200,000 more women - who would not otherwise have medical coverage.

But some say Plan First! is simply a Band-Aid for a moral problem.

Plan First! does not include abortion and fertility treatments.

A survey of maternal experiences and behavior before and during a woman's pregnancy by the Michigan Department of Community Health showed that in 2001, about 41 percent of all pregnancies were unintended.

Plan First! family planning resources include: annual physical examinations, followup visits, contraceptives, supplies and devices for preventing pregnancies, lab testing, counseling and education, treatment of sexually-transmitted diseases as well as male and female sterilization.

The services are available to women ages 19-44 - who are at or below 185 percent poverty level - meaning a single individual who makes $17,700 or less per year or a family of four that brings in $38,700 or less.

Plan First! would reduce unemployment because mothers wouldn't have to quit working to raise children and collect welfare, Bucholz and Reese said.

Women can enroll in the program by phone or online and a packet is sent via mail with information on where to obtain services in the respective area.