Should birth control be free?

Encyclopedia of Opinion

Question: Should birth control be free?
Position1 of 3›: Yes, birth control should be free
Argument‹4 of 5›: Birth control costs too much

Something so critical to so many people should not cost an arm and a leg.

The argument

For those with access to insurance, getting birth control is a relatively simple process. However, for those who don't have insurance or have a form that doesn't cover birth control, the expense can be outlandish. The pill can cost anywhere from twenty to eight hundred dollars a year for the average woman. An IUD can be up to $1300. The cheapest method of birth control out of the variety of options are condoms, which also happen to be the least effective with an 85% prevention rate. This cost prevents women from using birth control. Bringing down the price would allow more women to use it, creating healthier and more productive members of society.

Premises

[P1]Without insurance coverage, birth control is expensive — the pill can cost up to $800 a year and an IUD up to $1,300, while the cheapest option, condoms, is also the least effective. [P2] This cost prevents many women from using birth control, so bringing the price down would let more women use it and create healthier, more productive members of society. [C] Because birth control costs too much, birth control should be free.

Counter-arguments

Giving everyone free access to birth control may be cheaper for them, but in the long run it would likely be too costly. Pharmaceutical companies would go out of business as income becomes delayed due to these products being free. Morally it may be beneficial, but economically, it won't.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P2] This may be true, but making birth control free is not the answer to this.