POWER TO DECIDE APPLAUDS NEW GUIDANCE ON CONTRACEPTIVE COVERAGE AND URGES ENFORCEMENT

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Biden-Harris administration announced new actions to improve access to reproductive health care. This includes new guidance for health insurance plans to address an ongoing lack of compliance with the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) contraceptive coverage requirement.

The new guidance contains a set of FAQs that offer a new approach for plans to be in compliance with the requirements of the ACA. The administration urges health plans to cover all contraceptives without a therapeutic (generic) equivalent. It also reiterates that plans must also have a transparent and easy-to-use exceptions process for when a patient needs a specific contraceptive (as determined by their health care provider), and that not having that exceptions process or having it be unreasonably burdensome is a violation of their obligations. 

Power to Decide has detailed these ongoing violations in our 2022 report and the House Oversight and Reform Committee found similar patterns of non-compliance.

In response to the administration's new contraceptive coverage guidance, Power to Decide CEO, Raegan McDonald-Mosley, MD, MPH, issued the following statement:

“As a practicing OB-GYN, I know how frustrating it is for my patients to not have the contraceptive they need covered by the health insurance they pay for. Finding a birth control method that works for you takes time, and having a method denied by insurance is a significant barrier that often prevents people from getting the contraception they need. 

"We are pleased that the Biden-Harris administration is urging plans to cover all contraceptives without a therapeutic equivalent. This new approach is much needed, as people continue to face issues getting the contraceptive coverage they are entitled to by law. Plans must fix their exceptions processes and adopt this approach. We thank the administration for this new guidance and encourage them to couple it with strong enforcement of the contraceptive coverage requirement. 

"At Power to Decide, we remain committed to ensuring that everyone has the information they need to make informed decisions about their contraceptive journey. With Bedsider’s Method Explorer, individuals can learn about birth control options and find a method that works for their life.”

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Power to Decide is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to advance sexual and reproductive well-being for all by providing trusted information, expanding access to quality services, and catalyzing culture change.