Though it has faced opposition from both Democrats and Republicans, the American Health Care Act (or Trumpcare) is being introduced through House Committees. And after a marathon hearing, the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved the bill. But during the hearing, Republican Representative John Shimkus of Illinois drew fire for an entirely different reason.
When Democratic Representative Mike Doyle asked Shimkus about his objections to the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare), Shimkus laid out a few reasons.
“What mandate in the Obamacare bill does he take issue with?” Doyle asked.
Shimkus replied, “What about men having to purchase prenatal care?”
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"I’m just... is that not correct?” Shimkus asked. “And should they?”
WOW. The #GOP’s reason to object to insurance covering prenatal care? “Why should men pay for it?” Watch: #Trumpcare #ProtectOurCare pic.twitter.com/Q55nG1Un8j
— NARAL (@NARAL) March 9, 2017
Shimkus, who also once described himself as "a 100% pro-life Christian," seems to believe that women should have to carry a child to term when they get pregnant — whether they want to or not — but does not want to contribute to the health insurance that helps to pay for the cost of pregnancy healthcare. In other words, he doesn't believe that women should abort their pregnancies, but also doesn't think that it's necessary to give them the resources to have a healthy pregnancy.
Shimkus's comment also misses the point about how health insurance works — we can't pick and choose what we pay for. Just as men buy health insurance plans that also cover prenatal care, women buy plans that cover issues that men often deal with, such as prostate cancer or testicular cancer.
As Doyle told Shimkus during the hearing, "There’s no such thing as à la carte insurance, John."