Free Women's Preventative Care Benefits Begin

Free contraception and HPV screenings are among benefits.

Birth Control Is Included - Did you know that under Obamacare, name brand and generic birth control and other forms of hormonal contraception like the patch and IUDs are covered under these insurance plans? That means no more co-pay. (Photo: GettyImages)  

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Making Preventative Care More Accessible - Beginning Aug. 1, an estimated 47 million American women, including 5.1 million African-Americans, will no longer pay a co-pay or deductible for contraception, cervical cancer screenings, HIV testing and other preventative services under President Obama's Affordable Care Act. For now, the law only applies to private insurance companies for policies beginning or renewing on or after Aug. 1. BET.com breaks down what's included in this landmark legislation. —Britt Middleton (Photo:GettyImages)

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Millions to Receive Free Contraception - Women will now have access to FDA-approved contraception methods, including birth control, in addition to free contraception counseling. Certain nonprofit religious organizations, such as churches and schools, providing insurance to their employees are exempted from the contraception mandate at this time because many groups argued that it infringed upon their moral values. (Photo:GettyImages)

Psychologists - Psychologists may find a new home in Canada or Australia. Both nations are looking for immigrants in this profession. (Photo: Getty Images/STOCK)

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Domestic Abuse Counseling - The new law also tackles domestic violence against women as most insurers are now required to provide women with free domestic abuse screening and counseling. The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence estimates that 1.3 million women are victims of physical assault by their partner every year. (Photo: GettyImages)

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Raising Kids Alone Doesn’t Dampen Women’s Happiness - Despite the stigma behind single motherhood, a study finds that single moms do find happiness in life. Researchers from Sweden found that even when women faced money issues, societal disapproval and lack of partner support, single mothers were happy in their lives and made their children the “center of their worlds,” writes Health Day. (Photo: Susan Barr/Getty Images)

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Support for New Moms - Good news for new moms and moms-to-be: under the health care law, women will have greater access to resources for breastfeeding, as well as access to breastfeeding equipment and counseling from trained professionals. (Photo: GettyImages)

My Hair Can Grow Longer During Pregnancy – FACT - If you’re pregnant or have been, you may have found that your hair felt fuller during your pregnancy although your hair isn’t actually growing faster. Instead, you were simply losing it at a slower rate than usual. During the resting phase of hair growth, your hair naturally sheds. During pregnancy women experience higher estrogen levels, which prolong the hair’s growth phase resulting in less shedding.  (Photo: Monika Bender/Getty Images)

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Prenatal Care - Pregnant women will receive free screenings for gestational diabetes, high blood sugar that some women experience during their pregnancy, which increases a woman's risk of developing Type 2 diabetes in the future. Health services already provided under the health care law include folic acid supplements for women who may become pregnant, Hepatitis B screening for pregnant women and anemia screening for pregnant women. (Photo: GettyImages)

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HIV Screenings - Free HIV screening and counseling for sexually-active women is also included. HIV/AIDS disproportionally affects the African-American community, with Black women representing 57 percent of all new HIV infections among women in 2009, the Black AIDS Institute reports.   (Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

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Combatting Sexually Transmitted Infections - Women will also have access to free counseling for sexually transmitted infections (STIs). "These sessions have been shown to reduce risky behavior in patients, yet only 28 percent of women aged 18-44 years reported that they had discussed STIs with a doctor or nurse," The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services writes. (Photo: Brent Stirton/Getty Images) 

HPV Vaccine: A Wasted Resource for Blacks? - Despite the HPV vaccine’s effectiveness in reducing one’s risk of developing cervical and/or anal cancer, only a measly 1 percent of African-Americans boys and 8 percent of girls have received the series of shots. TheBody.com’s Dr. Gary Bell weighs in on these alarming low rates and why doctors don’t push the vaccine on their Black patients more often.  (Photo: Jessica Rinaldi/REUTERS)

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HPV Screenings - Free screenings for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) will be provided to women aged 30 or over every three years. HPV is the most common sexually transmitted virus in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Photo: REUTERS/Jessica Rinaldi)

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Annual Check-Ups - Annual wellness visits, including mammograms and Pap smears, are also covered under the ACA. These visits can help your doctor recognize what type of preventative services are needed and assist them in setting up the best prevention plan for you. (Photo: GettyImages)

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