Elimination of Co-payments for Birth Control is a Victory for Women's Health

Speaker of the House Christopher G. Donovan (D-Meriden) and State Rep. Roberta Willis (D-64th District) hosted a news conference with Planned Parenthood of Southern New England and NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut at the Planned Parenthood Clinic in Torrington to celebrate the elimination of cost-sharing such as co-pays for women’s birth control and other preventative services under new federal healthcare guidelines and discuss how the change will impact Connecticut women and their families.

New federal rules under national healthcare reform championed by President Obama eliminate insurance co-payments and deductibles effective August 1, 2012 for certain coverage including birth control, STD screening, and domestic violence counseling. Speaker Donovan sees the change as a victory for women’s health and said more must be done to combat higher costs of health insurance for women.  

“This is a major positive change in healthcare policy that greatly improves women’s health coverage and will reduce costs in the long run because it is an important step forward in preventative care,” said Donovan. “We must aggressively continue to work in the 2012 legislative session to further reduce cost inequities of healthcare coverage between women and men.”

Connecticut first mandated health insurance coverage for birth control in 1999. This year the legislature required coverage for a full breast MRI for women with dense breast tissue.  The legislature has also banned “drive by” deliveries and mastectomies and ensured direct access to OB-GYN care.

“Requiring insurers to provide birth control coverage for women free of charge is a welcomed development,” Rep. Willis said. “Reproductive health care should be available for all women. The enhanced health program also includes coverage for education and counseling which is an important provision of the plan.”

“We commend HHS on these regulations. The elimination of co-pays for these preventive services is a huge step in removing a financial obstacle that millions of American women face in getting the quality healthcare they need and deserve. We want the women of Connecticut to know that we’re here, we’ve been here, and we will continue to provide the preventive care they need,” said Judy Tabar, President & CEO of Planned Parenthood of Southern New England.

 According to NARAL, 98% of all women in the U.S. have used birth control at some point in their lives.               

“This new policy is a significant victory for women’s healthcare,” said NARAL Pro-Choice Connecticut Executive Director Christian Miron. “Ending co-pays for basic family planning services will put birth control within women’s financial reach and will allow a woman to choose the birth control method that she and a medical professional agree works best for her.”

“The new federal rules implement an evidence-based approach to women’s health. Co-pays create barriers that put routine and preventive care, including reproductive services and screenings, out of the reach for too many women in our community. Eliminating these hurdles will enable women to meet their unique health needs and stay healthy,” said State Representative Michelle Cook (D-65th District)

Speaker Donovan also said recent insulting comments by news commentators comparing birth control and domestic violence counseling to pedicures and manicures as well as a public statement by Republican Congressman Steve King of Iowa that free birth control coverage will “wipe out generations” showed that a gender-biased culture still exists regarding women and healthcare.