(photo) Sen. Somers Applauds Senate Passage of Bill to Expand Access to Birth Control

For Immediate Release

Senator Somers Applauds Senate Passage of Bill
to Expand Access to Birth Control

Sen. Heather Somers today applauded the State Senate’s passage of legislation she introduced and co-sponsored which would permit women to obtain prescription contraceptives directly from a pharmacist without requiring a trip to the doctor.

“Pharmacists are a vital resource and a critical access point for care in our communities,” Sen. Somers said. “This bill will strengthen their prescription authority, reduce barriers to reproductive health care and drive down costs for women as consumers.”

“Many women in Connecticut live in a contraceptive desert,” Sen. Somers added. “Almost 200,000 do not have regular access to a primary care provider or a clinic that can prescribe birth control. This bill provides women with increased access, ease of scheduling and most of all, choice. Choice of when, and if, to plan a pregnancy. This bill allows women to do this on their own terms.”

During the State Senate debate, Sen. Somers shared with fellow senators a policy paper written recently by a student at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU). The student, Maria Moriello, wrote that “without this bill, women may forego contraceptive therapy altogether, likely contributing to 50 % of unintended pregnancies.” A focus group at SCSU of women aged 24 and younger said that pharmacies are “more convenient, more cost effective, and help women who lack money, lack time and lack transportation to see a physician.” Moriello noted that Somers’ legislation would make birth control “more easily accessible and give women a choice.”

Sen. Somers noted that more than 20 other states have successfully implemented this reform, improving health care accessibility and saving taxpayers money, and that Connecticut should be the next.

The bill, which provides pharmacists and their technicians with training, is supported by the governor, lieutenant governor, the state Department of Consumer Protection, the Connecticut Pharmacists Association, the American Medical Association and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The bill awaits a vote in the House of Representatives. The Connecticut General Assembly’s session ends on June 7.

Sen. Somers represents Griswold, Groton, North Stonington, Plainfield, Preston, Sterling, Stonington and Voluntown.

Attached photo, left to right:

Rep. Holly Cheesman (R-East Lyme), Sen. Ryan Fazio (R-Greenwich), and Sen. Heather Somers (R-Groton) visited a CVS Pharmacy in February to discuss legislation to permit women to obtain prescription contraceptives directly from a pharmacist without requiring a trip to the doctor. The bill was passed overwhelmingly by the State Senate and awaits a vote in the House.