August 22, 2007 1:49PM 

# Pregnancy as a Random Occurrence 

By [Michael F. Cannon](https://www.cato.org/people/michael-f-cannon) 

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In 2004, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists tried to get California’s legislature to require consumers who purchase their own health insurance to buy coverage for … wait for it … the services of obstetricians and gynecologists.

The following comes from an [analysis](http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/03-04/bill/sen/sb_1551-1600/sb_1555_cfa_20040614_092744_asm_comm.html) of the [failed](http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/03-04/bill/sen/sb_1551-1600/sb_1555_bill_20041130_history.html) legislation that is available on the California Senate’s web site:

> In response to the suggestion that mandated coverage for maternity care will promote adverse selection, ACOG asserts that empirical evidence shows women cannot accurately predict when they will become pregnant, and therefore would not be able to time a purchase of insurance with an expected birth.

##### Related Tags 

[General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Health Care](https://www.cato.org/health-care), [Regulation](https://www.cato.org/regulatory-studies) 

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