The cost of immorality

Or, at least a little part of it, specifically a little procedure that women love to hate. I'm referring to the "pap smear," and this gynecologist indicates that the primary reason for that procedure is STD infection, specifically HPV. Evidently, about half of sexually active teens and young adults have it.

And so we can figure out one little part of the cost of fornication. Due to the legitimate fear of HPV and cervical cancer, approximately 100 million women at least ought to have this procedure done every year or so at a cost of around $100 plus the cost of the appointment--about another $100 or so. End result is that this STD--just one of 28--likely costs the nation somewhere between ten and twenty billion dollars annually (assuming some don't get it done), even before treatment costs for cervical cancer are accounted for.

Needless to say, I highly recommend Dr. Matt's blog. I also am tempted to see what kind of reaction my wife gets if she suggests to her ob/gyn that she'd like to reduce the frequency of testing due to the low risk we're blessed to have.