Why I believe in medical privacy and health insurance for all

• Insurance needs to be available to everybody - even those people with genetic problems. A parent should not have to weigh the threat of losing health insurance coverage against gathering vital medical information! I later learned that the State of Maryland does offer insurance to folks with medical problems, but my daughter won't be able to buy insurance if she moves. And any future employer has the right to see her medical file, so they might not hire her.

Clotting problems aren't rare either - about 5% of Caucasians alone have NO BUSINESS being on the pill. In our travels to Katie's many doctors and therapists, we have met three nurses who almost died last spring from blood clots caused by the pill. Like, Katie, none of them smoke and all are slender.

Whenever an ad for the pill comes on TV, Katie watches her friends' reactions. Some of them get excited about the idea of fewer periods, clearer skin or less moodiness. Katie's reaction is to yell at them, "Are you for real? What do you not understand about me almost dying after six weeks on the pill?"

Beth Pulsifer-Anderson is the author of The Reflux Book and the founder and Executive Director of the Pediatric Adolescent Gastroesophageal Reflux Association - www.reflux.org. She is the author of two medical journals and a contributing author on another.