My patient has an unplanned pregnancy because her insurance doesn’t cover any birth control. She could have afforded to pay for the pill out of pocket, but she takes a seizure medication that makes hormonal birth control less effective. What she needed was an IUD, which would have given her far better protection. The IUD and its insertion cost anywhere from $600 to $1,000. She couldn’t afford it. My patient’s seizure medication causes birth defects. She was more than a month along when she learned she was pregnant. Her insurance company will pay for the long-term care of a child born with severe health problems but not for birth control. Now she has decided to have an abortion. Her insurer won’t pay for that, either.