Democrats Push for Insurers to Cover Over-the-Counter Birth Control

Democrat Sen. Patty Murray (WA) is pushing for insurers to cover over-the-counter birth control, if and when it becomes available without a prescription, NPR reported Monday. 

“Women in many states today, because of the decision by the Supreme Court, are really worried about their access to be able to have birth control pills as a way of making sure they don’t become pregnant, because in their states, they won’t have access to abortion care,” Murray told the left-leaning news outlet.  

“I disagree wholeheartedly with the Supreme Court decision,” she said, referring to the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade “But at the same time, we need to make sure that over-the-counter birth control is available.”

The senator re-introduced the “Affordability is Access Act” on Thursday, which would “ensure that once the FDA determines an over-the-counter birth control option to be safe, insurers fully cover over-the-counter birth control without any fees or out-of-pocket costs,” according to her office. The bill would build on a requirement in Obamacare that “most health insurance companies provide contraceptive coverage without co-pay,” according to the report. 

Sens. Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Ami Bera (D-CA) joined Murray on the legislation. The legislation also has the support of several pro-abortion organizations, including NARAL Pro-Choice America and Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

“Women’s reproductive freedoms are under attack across the country, and we know that far-right extremists won’t stop at limiting a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body,” Cortez Masto said in part. “It is essential that we put policies in place now that will provide timely access to over-the-counter birth control once approved by the FDA.

The effort comes just weeks after outside advisers to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted unanimously to endorse over-the-counter birth control. The panel of advisers voted 17-0 to endorse the drug, called Opill, after deciding that the “benefits outweigh the potential risks,” The Hill reported. The agency, which does not have to follow the panel’s recommendation, is expected to make a final decision this summer.

While birth control and abortion advocates celebrated the news, Students for Life of America President Kristan Hawkins released a statement via email following the advisers’ endorsement calling the move “a feckless decision that empowers abusers.”

“Making it easy for abusers to cover up their sexual abuse and statutory rape crimes with Online, No Test Chemical Abortion Pills or over-the-counter birth control sales is negligent public policy,” Hawkins said. “The FDA ignores the impact of their policies on minors, including failing to show what the exact long-term impact of such early exposure on young women might be.”