Lehigh Times

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Susan Wild helped reintroduce the bicameral Right to Contraception Act: legislation to codify the right for Americans to access all forms of FDA-approved birth control into federal law. This bill passed the House of Representatives last year with a bipartisan vote of 228-195.

“I won’t stand idly by as extremist politicians attempt to legislate their way into the doctor’s office, which is why I’m proud to once again support the Right to Contraception Act,” said Congresswoman Susan Wild. “Access to birth control is a function of basic reproductive health care, but it’s also more than that—it’s something that millions of people rely on to treat a wide array of health conditions unrelated to family planning, including decreasing their risk of developing certain cancers. Amidst continued attacks on access to contraception, I will never waver in my support for every American’s freedom to control their body and their life.”

Just under a year since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health decision stripped the right to choose from millions of American women, reproductive health care continues to be under attack across the country. Justice Clarence Thomas’ concurrence in Dobbs called for the Court to reconsider the right to contraception itself, highlighting the clear threat to birth control due to extremist attacks – including nine states that have adopted restrictions to emergency contraception since Dobbs.

About the Right to Contraception Act:

The bicameral Right to Contraception Act would uphold access to contraception by:

• Guaranteeing the legal right for individuals to get and use contraception and for health care providers to provide contraceptives, contraception, and information, referrals, and services related to contraception;
• Prohibiting the federal government or any state from administering, implementing, or enforcing any law, rule, regulation, standard or other provision that would prohibit or restrict the sale, provision, or use of contraception; and
• Allowing the Department of Justice (DOJ), providers, and individuals harmed by restrictions on contraception access made unlawful under the legislation, to go to court to enforce these rights.

Rep. Wild’s Record of Standing Up for Reproductive Health Care This Year:

• Rep. Wild co-sponsored H.R. 12, the Women’s Health Protection Act, to codify the right to choose and protect abortion rights and reproductive health care for every American woman.
• Rep. Wild co-sponsored H.R. 2573, the Protecting Reproductive Freedom Act, to reaffirm the FDA’s final authority in approving medication abortion.
• Rep. Wild co-sponsored H.R. 561, the EACH Act of 2023, to ensure every American can access the reproductive care they need, regardless of health insurance plan or income.
• Rep. Wild co-sponsored the H.R. 782, the Ensuring Women’s Right to Reproductive Freedom Act, to protect people who travel across state lines to access abortion care and other reproductive services.
• Rep. Wild signed on to an amicus brief urging an appeals court to block a ruling banning mifepristone from going into effect.
• Rep. Wild co-sponsored a resolution clarifying the FDA’s regulating authority and condemning attempts to reverse the approval of mifepristone.

Original Source can be found here.