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The bill – the Right to Contraception Act – would enshrine into federal law a right for individuals to buy and use contraceptives, as well as for health care providers to provide them. It would apply to birth control pills, the plan B pill, condoms and other forms of contraception.
GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins crossed over to vote with Democrats in favor of advancing the bill. [but it didn't reach the 60 for cloture]
Democratic senators have also introduced a legislative package to establish a nationwide right to in-vitro fertilization, which is expected to come up for a vote as soon as next week.
That follows an Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that the destruction of embryos could be considered “wrongful deaths.” While the state’s Legislature took action aimed at protecting IVF in the wake of the ruling, Democrats argue that this is only one example of how access to reproductive health care is under threat across the nation.
Republicans have introduced their own bills on IVF and contraception in an effort to prove that Democrats are unfairly attempting to paint them as extreme. GOP Sens. Katie Britt and Ted Cruz introduced a bill called the IVF Protection Act in May, and Republican Sen. Joni Ernst has put forward a separate bill to promote access to contraception.
Asked how her effort is different from what Democrats want, Ernst said, “It does not include Plan B, which many folks on the right would consider abortive services."
The pill, which is a strong dose of the birth control hormone levonorgestrel, prevents or delays the release of an egg from a woman’s ovary – a step that occurs well before pregnancy.
GOP Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins crossed over to vote with Democrats in favor of advancing the bill. [but it didn't reach the 60 for cloture]
Democratic senators have also introduced a legislative package to establish a nationwide right to in-vitro fertilization, which is expected to come up for a vote as soon as next week.
That follows an Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that the destruction of embryos could be considered “wrongful deaths.” While the state’s Legislature took action aimed at protecting IVF in the wake of the ruling, Democrats argue that this is only one example of how access to reproductive health care is under threat across the nation.
Republicans have introduced their own bills on IVF and contraception in an effort to prove that Democrats are unfairly attempting to paint them as extreme. GOP Sens. Katie Britt and Ted Cruz introduced a bill called the IVF Protection Act in May, and Republican Sen. Joni Ernst has put forward a separate bill to promote access to contraception.
Asked how her effort is different from what Democrats want, Ernst said, “It does not include Plan B, which many folks on the right would consider abortive services."
The pill, which is a strong dose of the birth control hormone levonorgestrel, prevents or delays the release of an egg from a woman’s ovary – a step that occurs well before pregnancy.
