"pre-pregnant"

[cellio]

The Washington Post reported yesterday that new federal guidelines ask all females capable of conceiving a baby to treat themselves -- and to be treated by the health care system -- as pre-pregnant, regardless of whether they plan to get pregnant anytime soon. amergina posted a link to the 30-page report from the CDC, which I haven't gotten to load yet but I'm caching the link for future reference.

Recognizing that this is (currently) a limited recommendation, I am still fearful of where this could go. It's a small step from "recommend" to "require"; even if the government doesn't formally require, will doctors follow the recommendation to stay on the right side of malpractice claims and future federal action? Will many (or most) pharmacists refuse to fill prescriptions for drugs to treat actual ailments for fear of harming a hypothetical fetus (even if the woman says "if impregnated I will not carry to term")? Will restaurants and bars start refusing to serve alcohol to women? Will employers keep women out of jobs with environmental hazards? No, not immediately, but we shouldn't ignore it any more than we should ignore other dangerous trends oozing from Washington (and Washington's handlers).

Women are not incubators. It is hubris for anyone not directly involved to expect women to restrict ourselves for the sake of children we're not necessarily even planning to have. If, heaven forbid, I come down with some serious illness, I want the best treatment available -- regardless of what it could do were I to become pregnant. [1] I will listen to my doctor's advice about things like alcohol, diet, and exercise for my own sake (that's part of what I pay him for), but acting on it is my decision alone, morally speaking, and it's insulting to say "think of the baby!" rather than "think of your own health!". ('Cause, I suppose, we aren't smart enough to want to take care of ourselves, but we're programmed to love babies. Bzzt.)

By all means -- make patients aware of the effects of their choices and treatment options on hypothetical future children if they care about this. That's being a good doctor. So long as we stay in the space of recommendations from doctors to patients, we're fine. But I fear the slope before us -- that it will not stay between doctors and patients, and that it will not stay as mere recommendations. And I don't know what the best way to prevent a slide down that slope is.

[1] Ok, I am not personally capable of becoming pregnant, but that is irrelevant to my point.

Comments

[sue-n-julia.livejournal.com]

I agree. I was just amused because my doctor figured a lesbian was quite likely to know the risk of being pregnant. But, I got her to switch me to a new drug that I've had a better response to (and could get in more than a 10-day supply at a time).

S