The LARC funding issue affecting availability of contraceptives is likewise being decided by politicians when it should be a medical decision between patient and health care provider. The concern that the contraception induces abortion is not a valid one in the medical community. In a political, religious or other community where misinformation and inflammatory rhetoric are valid, a woman’s right to plan her pregnancies is disregarded as the community makes the choice for her by limiting her access. We have seen what political rhetoric about “selling fetal body parts” has done to communities across the country.

There has also been recent attention to big Pharma’s direct-to-consumer advertising as well as their profits from Medicare Part D. These are political/financial issues that threaten quality health care by introducing the dangerous motive of profit to decisions that belong with the patient and the patient’s doctor. Lastly, in regard to access to affordable health care in our state, keep in mind that the health care industry is exactly that: a for-profit industry. That’s not health care, it’s politics.

Lauri Costello

Durango