Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) joined her Senate Democratic colleagues in speaking out on the Senate Floor in support of the Right to Contraception Act. The bill would guarantee the right for people to obtain and use contraceptives and give information related to contraception free from government interference.
“Basic reproductive and sexual health care tools like contraception, like STI prevention, and like fertility treatment are under immediate threat, further reducing patients’ options on when and whether to start or grow their families,” said Senator Butler. “In Arizona, every Republican in both legislative chambers blocked legislation to protect access to contraception. In Oklahoma, we’ve seen the Republican legislature there advance legislation that could create a database of women who’ve obtained an abortion and could make IUDs and emergency contraception inaccessible. In Tennessee, House Republicans voted down a bill in committee that would have made clear that the state’s abortion ban would not jeopardize access to contraceptive care or fertility treatments. In short, M. President, at every opportunity extreme MAGA Republicans haven’t stopped their unconscionable campaign to chip away at women’s access to basic health care.”
Senate Republicans blocked the Right to Contraception Act from passing by unanimous consent in 2022 and again in 2023. The bill passed the House of Representatives in July 2022. This is the first time the Right to Contraception Act has come for a vote in the Senate.
