IU experts comment on Supreme Court's contraceptive coverage ruling in favor of Hobby Lobby: Access to contraception, health care benefits men and families, too

Debby Herbenick, co-director of the Center for Sexual Health Promotion at the Indiana University School of Public Health-Bloomington, said access to health care, including reproductive health care, benefits not only women, but men and families. Most women in the U.S. and their male partners, including most religious women and their male partners, use some form of contraceptives, but costs and reliability vary.

"As noted in the dissenting opinion, IUDs can cost significant amounts of money and yet are long-lasting, safe and effective forms of contraception that an increasing number of women and men choose to help plan their families. Birth control pills are particularly common," said Herbenick, who also is a sexuality educator at The Kinsey Institute. "And yet many women and men, often due to lack of sexuality education or money or insurance for contraceptives, don't use reliable methods of birth control and may find themselves needing emergency contraception. About half of pregnancies in the U.S. are unplanned, and nearly one-third of women have had or will have an abortion in their lifetime.

"We need to increase access not only to sexuality education but also to reproductive health care and contraception, including emergency contraception, in order to most effectively help women and men plan their families. Women and their partners may find themselves taking today's ruling into consideration when they consider not only where they want to work, but where they want to shop."