Ethics of Ending Birth Control Coverage (Essay Sample)

The Ethics of Ending Birth Control Coverage Name: Course: Instructor: Institution: Date of Submission: The Ethics of Ending Birth Control Coverage The decision by Hobby Lobby and Wheaton College to decline birth control coverage to their employees or students because birth control use violates the religious principles is ethical. In the case of Wheaton College – which has decided to end all student health care coverage in order to avoid violating the regulations of the Affordable Care Act – can also be defended on ethical grounds. To begin with, religious freedoms must not be infringed under any circumstances, unless there is evidence that that goes against the existing rules and regulations. Wheaton College is founded on a strong Christian foundation. It is therefore important that the institution defends this position aggressively. Without this position, the college losses its uniqueness and becomes just like any other secular one. Besides, the reasons fronted for not wanting to provide contraceptives are valid. Contraceptives like intrauterine devices and FDA-approved morning-after pills, which work by preventing a fertilized egg from attaching to the uterus for implantation, are simply abortions inducing (Rhonheimer & Murphy, 2010). Given the fact that the Church is strongly against abortion – and Wheaton College is a Christian institution – there are strong moral grounds as to why the college cannot continue to provide coverage for contraceptives. To be fair enough, it is not that these institutions have forbidden their members from accessing contraceptives. All that they have done is to simply refuse to provide then. If anyone wants to make use of them, they are free to get them through their own private means. They can purchase then from other providers. The only difference is that they would not get them for free or through insurance from the college. Therefore, all that the institutions have done is to refuse to be part of implementing a decision that they consider unethical and immoral. It is within their rights to do so. Anyone wanting such services can simply get them from the many other providers who offer them. There is the view that when it comes to Wheaton College, ending all healthcare services so as not to provide contraceptives is going too far and amounts to blasting mosquitoes with rifles. However, to say so is to misunderstand the situation. There is simply no way that the college can provide healthcare coverage while excluding the provision of contraceptives. If it were to do so, it would open the avenues to countless lawsuits. The only way to do so is to not provide healthcare coverage all together. This is not an easy decision. As a matter of fact, the college regrets that it has to pull such a radical move. Leaving hundreds without healthcare insurance so as to avoid providing contraceptives is taking a measure that borders on the extreme. However, to fail to do so would violate a principle that is so dear to the institution (Hammaker, Knadig, & Tomlinson, 2016). Such a principle ought to be jealously guarded. Besides, it is not farfetched to state that the government was already counting on that while making the legislation. It knew the institution would be in a dilemma in choosing to defend its principles and letting hundreds go without insurance. Unfortunately, organizations like Hobby Lobby and Wheaton College chose to uphold and defend their religious beliefs and would not allow themselves to be arm twisted by the government through tricky legislations. To make the argument above is not to mean that this essay does not appreciate the importance of birth control and the role of contraceptives in managing parenthood. Birth control is important. It helps people manage families and give birth to children that they can raise comfortably. It is important in reducing poverty levels. Therefore, this is not an argument against contraceptives but rather a defense of the ethics of choosing not to provide them, when their provision flies against religious freedoms. No matter how good birth control is, institutions must never be tricked, arm...