PA House Speaker Joanna McClinton speaking at a press conference on the two year anniversary of the US Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade at the Pennsylvania State Capitol in Harrisburg on June 24, 2024. (Photo: Sean Kitchen)
House Bill 1140 passed by the PA House by a 133 to 69 vote on Tuesday. The bill mandates insurance coverage for all FDA birth control medication and devices.
A bill expanding health insurance coverage for birth control passed the Pennsylvania House on Tuesday by a bipartisan 133 to 69 vote, and now heads to the Pennsylvania Senate for further action.
House Bill 1140 was introduced by State Rep. Leanne Krueger (D-Delaware) and unanimously passed the House Insurance Committee earlier this month. The bill restricts copayments and mandates health insurance providers to cover all birth control drugs and devices that are approved by the Federal Drug Administration.
“Contraception is health care, plain and simple, and no one but a woman and her doctor should decide what medical care she has the right to receive,” Krueger said in a statement. “Pennsylvania currently has no protections in state law for contraceptive access, so attacks at the federal level jeopardize our access.”
“Today’s vote is an important first step to ensuring access to contraception for all Pennsylvanians who need, want and deserve it.”
The passage of the bill was praised by Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania.
“We must have control over if and when we decide to start our families, but Pennsylvania has for too long allowed loopholes, exemptions and oversights to stand between us and our autonomy,” Planned Parenthood PA Advocates Executive Director Signe Espinoza said in a statement.
“Rep. Krueger’s bill is an enormous shift toward control over our bodies, and we are thrilled to see the enormous support in the legislature. Access to contraception is essential, life affirming, and widely popular. We urge the Senate to take quick action.”
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