ALBANY – For the third consecutive year, the State Assembly has passed the comprehensive contraception coverage act sponsored by Assemblyman Kevin Cahill (D, Kingston). The measure now goes to the Senate where lawmakers failed to act on the bill in previous years.
Federal law currently requires that all 18 types of approved contraception are available and covered by insurance policies without additional fees or coinsurance charges. The proposed legislation would codify the requirements into state law ensuring that an individual has access to emergency contraception and up to a 12-month supply of birth control at a time without copayments or other cost sharing.
Cahill said this “common-sense legislation clarifies and reaffirms existing law, protecting this important right for New Yorkers regardless of what may happen in Washington.”
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman introduced the legislation to protect New York women. “With Washington attempting to roll back the clock on women’s rights and health care access every way possible, New York must take the lead in guaranteeing vital access to contraception,” Schneiderman said. “No New Yorker should have to worry about losing the birth control access on which they rely to stay healthy and plan for their future.”
