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You Shouldn't Shell Out for the Pill.(Brief Article)
At 26, the author dragged her bosses to court to get her contraception covered by insurance. Here's how she shook up the stodgy status quo.
* I've never been much of an activist. When I attended Purdue University in Indiana, I didn't belong to any political organizations or champion any particular causes. But a few years ago, I got swept up in an issue that was having a big impact on my life: getting birth control covered by health insurance. In June 2001, I won a landmark court decision to include contraceptives in my health plan. And even though I sometimes found it tough to be in the spotlight, I'm happy knowing that what I did can help so many other women.
Do you realize that your company's health plan may discriminate against women? I wasn't aware of this kind of discrimination until I was in a committed relationship and went on the Pill. In September 1998, I got engaged to my boyfriend, Scott. I moved to Seattle and started working for a pharmacy chain called Bartell Drugs. Bartell's health plan didn't cover birth control, so I had to pay for the Pill out of my own pocket. As I started my job behind a pharmacy counter, I soon realized that I was hardly alone in my frustration. I would fill other women's prescriptions, and time and again, I'd hear their disbelief when they found out they would not be reimbursed. I lamented the situation with Scott, and he agreed with me, saying, "I can't believe it's not covered." Emboldened, I wrote a letter to Bartell asking for the reason behind their policy. I received a tepid response saying that contraceptives just weren't part of their plan. Then one day while I was in Planned Parenthood getting my own Pills, I complai ned about it to my practitioner. Her response: "We can help you."
They put me in touch with a lawyer, ...
- BARTELL TOLD TO PAY FOR BIRTH CONTROL COMPANY'S HEALTH CARE PLAN DISCRIMINATES...
- Newspaper article from: Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Seattle, WA) Skolnik, Sam June 13, 2001 700+ words
...made the changes. Bartell, too, added prescription...contraception benefits to its health plan for union members April...non-profit refused. Bartell proceeded anyway, she...suit claimed that the Bartell health plan violated the Pregnancy...
- IN OR OUT OF COURT, BARTELL HAD NO DEFENSE.(Editorial)
- Newspaper article from: Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Seattle, WA) June 14, 2001 700+ words
...court in Seattle declared that Bartell Drug Co. violated the federal...avoid unwanted pregnancies. Bartell's only real defense is cost...to say, the failure of a health plan to cover contraception does...include birth control in a health plan might seem to be only a matter...
- Federal ruling revives contraceptive coverage debate.(female employees win case...
- Magazine article from: Employee Benefit News August 1, 2001 700+ words
...lawsuit against her employer, Bartell Drugs. While the specifics of the ruling apply only to the Bartell health plan, the case has had a ripple...and women's health needs. Bartell viewed its health plan as lawful and nondiscriminatory...
- Bartell Drugs Chooses Web-Based Drug and Clinical Reference for Speed and...
- Press release article from: PR Newswire June 3, 2004 700+ words
...Inc. announced today that Bartell Drugs -- the oldest family...unit and dose converters. Bartell sought to leverage ePocrates...ePocrates applications contain the health plan formularies (list of covered...is excited to work with the Bartell Drug Store chain as this is...
- Coverage for Contraceptives Offered to Bartell Drugs Employees; Company...
- Press release article from: Business Wire June 12, 2001 700+ words
...BUSINESS WIRE)--June 12, 2001 Bartell Drugs officials stood by their...suit claimed the company's health plan was discriminatory because...though the court recognized that Bartell's offers its employees an...this judgement," said Jean Bartell Barber, the company's CFO...
- Bartell picks program for net reference.(News)(Bartell Drug Co.)(Brief Article)
- Magazine article from: Chain Drug Review July 19, 2004 700+ words
SEATTLE -- Bartell Drug Co. has chosen ePocrates...president of pharmacy for Bartell. "ePocrates gives answers...from ePoctrates contain the health plan formularies for most third...is excited to work with Bartell. This is an example of...
- BARTELL CLASS-ACTION SETTLEMENT OK'D AGREEMENT ON CONTRACEPTIVE COVERAGE.(News)
- Newspaper article from: Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Seattle, WA) March 5, 2003 700+ words
...Lasnik, women who are still Bartell employees will have no insurance...then a 27-year-old former Bartell pharmacist. She claimed the...contraceptives in its employee health plan was a form of sex discrimination...in a landmark decision that Bartell had discriminated against its...
- Covering the Cause and Effect.(Bartell Drug Co., gender-biased prescription...
- Magazine article from: Risk Management Swift, Billie September 1, 2001 700+ words
...judge in Seattle ruled that the Bartell Drug Company, a family-owned...contraceptives from its employee health plan. The issue of gender-biased...old pharmacist employed by Bartell, filed the class-action...did not, however, believe Bartell had shown any bad faith or...
Source: HighBeam Research, You Shouldn't Shell Out for the Pill.(Brief Article)