The bill defines “contraception” as “an action taken to prevent pregnancy, including the use of contraceptives or fertility-awareness-based methods and sterilization procedures,” and “contraceptive” as any drugs, devices or biological products used for pregnancy prevention that are cleared in accordance with either the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act or the Public Health Service Act.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, whose state has a near-total abortion ban, heavily criticized the bill.
“The bill is an overt attempt to circumvent states’ ability to direct family planning funding to providers that do not promote abortion while being overly broad in defining contraception to include drugs for chemical abortions,” he wrote on X on Monday. “The Supreme Court has already affirmed the right to access contraception and there is not an existent threat to individual access.”
The House passed this bill in July 2022, when it was still controlled by Democrats.
With the Republicans now in charge of the House, this bill does not stand much of a chance of getting a vote in that chamber. However, on Tuesday, Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass., will lead a group of Democratic House members in rallying for it at a press conference.
