If you haven’t heard yet, BC made birth control and other contraceptives free at the end of March 2023. We’re the first jurisdiction of Canada to make contraceptives free! Of course, you still need a prescription for birth control, but now it’s covered completely by the government. This was passed in an attempt to lower abortion rates and unwanted pregnancies. In return, this will essentially help with the foster care system and reduce the amount of kids who end up being abandoned by parents who aren’t in a position to raise their child.

As amazing as this is, it still makes me wonder why the government doesn’t help out with costs on things that people need– such as glasses or contacts, dentistry, women’s products for that time of the month and more. I’ve always found it slightly unfair that people who can’t control having bad eyesight, for example, have to suffer the extra expenses just to properly see. I mean, it’s even illegal to drive without eye aid if you have a certain prescription or higher. For myself, I have glasses and contacts. For contacts, the contact solution is an extra expense which no coverage covers, and the actual contacts and glasses are super expensive too if you don’t have coverage from employment. That’s a lot of expenses over the years that visually blessed people don’t have to deal with.

But then, if they make those things free… don’t people also need things like groceries and housing? Cough cough, the most expensive things ever right now? Particularly housing in BC- the inflation is out of control. I mean come on, an average house built a hundred years ago in a not-super-optimal location in Burnaby is over $3 million? Uhh… okay. I guess young adults will never be independent unless they inherit property. Nevermind food- it’s ridiculous and makes the average person not even want to eat. But maybe we consumed too much food before? As a first world country, we for sure eat more than we need to. I mean, take one look at America and all you’ll see is supersized everything. Eating less as a nation will help the general population’s health, the amount we rely on other countries for produce and other imported foods, and even our ecosystem. Growing food takes so much water and land, and as we grow as a country, that will also continue to grow. I’m not saying by any means that it’s okay for food prices to be as high as they are, but maybe it’ll help discourage people from buying things they don’t need.

It’s great that contraceptives are free, and maybe it would be a bad thing if the government made much more free to the public. After all… that’s economy, isn’t it?