Health care law a great help to women

Effective Aug. 1, under President Obama’s Affordable Care Act, the following is a list of benefits available now without any co-pays or deductibles on the part of the patient, and women should be made aware of them:

Screening and counseling for victims of domestic violence. Breast-feeding support and counseling. Contraceptive counseling. HIV screening. Testing for gestational diabetes. Counseling for STDs and testing for HPV. Annual well-woman examinations (preventive care).

Women are frequently charged more than men for their medical care, and women often put off examinations and preventive screenings due to the cost involved. These services, as part of the new ACA, will not only benefit women, but will benefit their families as well, as more wives and mothers receive proper care. I also note that under the ACA, insurance companies are required to spend at least 80 percent of all revenue from our premiums on actual health care payments and not on CEO bonuses and additional profits for the company.

Marie Harris

Bartlett