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The White House on January 22 announced a series of steps it plans to take to increase access to abortions and contraceptives to mark what would have been the 51st anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision that codified the right to abortion into law.
Following the court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in June 2022, 21 states have restricted or banned access to abortions, forcing thousands of patients to travel out of state to receive abortion care.
“In states across the country, women are being turned away from emergency rooms, forced to go to court to seek permission for the medical attention they need, and made to travel hundreds of miles for healthcare,” President Joe Biden said in a statement shared with Healthcare Brew.
The first step the White House plans to take is to expand access to free contraceptives under the Affordable Care Act.
The Office of Personnel Management, which serves as human resources for federal employees, will also require insurers participating in the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program to increase contraceptive access for federal workers, retirees, and their family members. The insurers will be required, for the first time, to educate beneficiaries about their contraception benefits, according to the White House.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra will issue a letter to private insurers, state Medicaid programs, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Medicare plans outlining their obligation to cover contraceptives, according to the White House.
The Biden administration said officials will work to increase awareness of the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which says emergency care can include abortions and requires hospitals to provide emergency abortions—even in states where abortions are restricted or banned, according to the Washington Post.
HHS has a “comprehensive plan” to educate patients about their rights under EMTALA, according to the press release. The agency also plans to create a team of experts dedicated to helping hospitals stay in compliance with EMTALA.
“We stand with the vast majority of Americans who support a woman’s right to choose, and continue to call on Congress to restore the protections of Roe in federal law once and for all,” Biden said in a statement.