Biden White House proposes insurance cover OTC birth control at no cost
The Biden administration is proposing a rule that would provide women with private insurance free access to over-the-counter birth control pills and other contraceptives.
The Biden administration is proposing a rule that would provide over 50 million women with private insurance access to over-the-counter birth control pills and other contraceptives at no cost, the White House said Monday.
The rule, which would expand a federal mandate requiring health insurers to cover preventive care services at no cost to patients under the Affordable Care Act, is being proposed by the departments of Health and Human Services, Labor and Treasury. It would go into effect next year if it is finalized.
“This rule, once finalized, will expand contraception coverage for 52 million women of reproductive age with private health insurance,” White House Gender Policy Council Director Jennifer Klein said at a briefing.
“For the first time ever, women would be able to obtain over-the-counter contraception without a prescription at no additional cost, and health plans would have to cover even more prescribed contraceptives without cost sharing,” she said.
Perrigo Co.’s Opill is the only daily birth control pill approved for sale without prescriptions by the Food and Drug Administration. The proposed rule would cover other forms of over-the-counter contraceptives, including emergency contraception, such as the morning after pill Plan B, spermicides, birth control sponges and condoms.
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