Access to Birth Control Act
Latest action · Nov 17, 2021 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedNov 17, 2021
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Access to Birth Control Act
This bill requires pharmacies to comply with certain rules related to ensuring access to contraceptives.
Specifically, pharmacies must provide without delay a customer with any contraceptive or related medication that is in stock. If the contraceptive is not in stock, the pharmacy must immediately inform the customer and either order the contraceptive or refer the customer to a pharmacy that has it in stock. Laws in some states provide pharmacists with the right to refuse to dispense contraceptive-related drugs on religious or conscience grounds.
Pharmacies may refuse to provide a contraceptive to a customer (1) if the customer lacks a valid prescription for a prescription contraceptive or is unable to pay for the contraceptive, or (2) based on a pharmacy employee's professional clinical judgment.
The bill also establishes a private cause of action and civil monetary penalties for violations of the bill.
Cosponsors 21
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Nov 17, 2021.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-CA | Alex Padilla | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-MN | Amy Klobuchar | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-MD | Chris Van Hollen | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-CT | Christopher Murphy | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-MA | Edward J. Markey | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-MA | Elizabeth Warren | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-NV | Jacky Rosen | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-NH | Jeanne Shaheen | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-OR | Jeff Merkley | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-NY | Kirsten E. Gillibrand | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-NM | Martin Heinrich | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-HI | Mazie K. Hirono | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-WA | Patty Murray | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-CT | Richard Blumenthal | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-NJ | Robert Menendez | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-OR | Ron Wyden | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-RI | Sheldon Whitehouse | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-OH | Sherrod Brown | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-WI | Tammy Baldwin | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-VA | Tim Kaine | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
| D-MN | Tina Smith | Original | Nov 17, 2021 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee | Referred Nov 17, 2021 |
Actions 2
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Nov 17, 2021Introduced in Senate
- Nov 17, 2021Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| S. Hrg. 117-403 | REPRODUCTIVE CARE IN A POST-ROE AMERICA: BARRIERS, CHALLENGES, AND THREATS TO WOMEN'S HEALTH85 pages | Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee | Jul 13, 2022 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 6005 | Access to Birth Control Act | Identical bill | Nov 18, 2021 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to establish certain duties for pharmacies to ensure provision of Food and Drug Administration-approved contraception, medication related to contraception, and for other purposes.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Access to Birth Control Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Health.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Nov 17, 2021Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
