Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree and more than 90 other lawmakers in the Democratic Women's Caucus are urging the Biden administration to do more to ensure access to birth control.
Under the Affordable Care Act, insurers are supposed cover birth control without any out of pocket costs. The law also requires that over-the counter birth control must be available without a prescription.
But a recent Congressional report found systemic noncompliance with the law. In Maine, lawmakers passed a bill last year that requires insurance companies to cover all FDA-approved birth control methods. But acting CEO of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, Nicole Clegg, said the issue also needs federal action.
"Because the reality is that the Maine law only applies to insurance products that are sold and regulated by the state of Maine," Clegg said. "There's lots of other insurance that's only regulated by the federal government. So for true access to be improved, it really needs to be addressed at the federal level."
Pingree and other lawmakers want the Biden Administration to require insurance companies to cover every FDA- approved birth control product without cost sharing. They also want the administration to clarify that prescriptions are not needed for over the counter birth control.
