By John Finnerty

CapitolWire

Insurance companies would be required to continue providing contraception at no cost to patients under legislation approved by the state House — even if Congress rolls back the Affordable Care Act.

House Bill 1140 was approved with bipartisan support, passing 116-87. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.

Insurance companies have been required to cover contraception since the federal Affordable Care Act was signed into law by former President Barack Obama in 2010.

Rep. Leanne Krueger, D-Delaware, said she’s been working on legislation to protect access to contraception since 2017 but “with a lot of conversation at the federal level happening right now about returning decisions about reproductive health care to the state level, the need to pass this is bill is greater than ever.”

The average out-of-pocket cost for contraception is about $1,000 a year if it’s not covered by insurance. And before the ACA made contraception free, 1 in 3 women reported struggling to afford birth control.

Efforts to roll back free access to contraception would “endanger the health and economic security of at least 2.5 million women in Pennsylvania who depend on the coverage funded by their employers for access to affordable, effective contraceptives,” Krueger said in a memo to other lawmakers. “These targeted and cruel assaults on women’s health must end.”

Contraception has other medical uses beyond birth control, Krueger said.

“Research shows the clear, non-contraceptive health benefits of these medications, including decreased bleeding and pain with menstrual periods, reduced risk of gynecological disorders and endometriosis, pelvic inflammatory disease,” Krueger said. Contraception can also be used to decrease the risk of certain types of cancer, she said.

“A significant percentage of contraceptive users in the United States use contraceptives for a reason completely unrelated to preventing pregnancy,” Krueger said.

There would be no additional cost to the state because the existing state-run insurance programs already offer free contraception, according to a fiscal note completed by the House Appropriations Committee.

Insurance companies that defy the law would face fines up to $500,000.