Booker, Maloney re-introduce bill to safeguard patients' access to birth control.

Byline: Anthony Vecchione

U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, D-NJ, and U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-NY, re-introduced the Access to Birth Control Act on Tuesday, a bill that would guarantee patients' timely access tobirth control at the pharmacy.

In a press release, Booker's office said that contraception is an essential part of reproductive health care and patients who need this care should be able to access it in a timely manner.

However, according to Booker, there have been reports of pharmacies in at least 25 states that have refused to dispense contraception to patients. The Access to Birth Control Act would ensure that pharmacies provide a contraceptive or a medication related to a contraceptive to a patient without delay, or assist the patient in accessing their medication elsewhere if it is out of stock.

"Birth control is a vital part of reproductive health care and basic family planning,"Booker said in a statement."No person should be denied access to birth control because of someone else's views including at the pharmacy. At a time when reproductive rights and women's rights are under increasing attack by the Trump Administration, protecting Americans' access to contraception is more important than ever."

"The decision to use birth control is up to a woman and her doctor and no one should have the right to block access to contraception simply because they personally don't agree with that choice,"said Maloney."Nearly all women in the U.S. will use some form of birth control during her life and they shouldn't have to jump through hoops to get it. Under the Affordable Care Act, FDA-approved birth control is covered by insurance with...