Unintended Pregnancy Reduction Act (S 1075 & HR 2523)
Introduced by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) and Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY)

What is it
Why you should approve it
Bill Status
Take Action Now

What it is>>

The Unintended Pregnancy Reduction Act would require states to equalize Medicaid benefits by extending coverage for family planning services to women who would be entitled to pregnancy-related care if they became pregnant.  If enacted, it would result in significant savings to both states and the federal government, while at the same time improving health and well-being. The measure would also assert that family planning services are mandatory benefits under Medicaid, something that was called into question by the Deficit Reduction Act (2005).

Why you should support it>>

• Poor investments mean poor outcomes:  Not surprisingly, during the time in the United States that contraceptive use increased, unintended pregnancy rates and the rate of abortion decreased.  But all the progress made through the mid 1990s came to a stall between 1994 and 2001.
  
• Prevent unintended pregnancies and abortions among low-income women:  The disparity in access to services is mirrored by a disparity in income levels.  Rates of unintended pregnancy in the United States increased by nearly 30 percent among low-income women between 1994 and 2001.  During the same time period, rates fell 20 percent among women who are more affluent.  Poor women at risk of unplanned pregnancy account for 16 percent of the total, yet account for 30 percent of unplanned pregnancies.  Poor women are also three times as likely to have an abortion as their more affluent peers.
  
• Bounty of Benefits:  By providing access to contraceptives to those women who are already eligible for prenatal care from Medicaid, in the third year of implementation, it is estimated that the net savings in Medicaid costs would total $1.5 billion.  It would prevent unplanned pregnancies among half a million women, which in turn would prevent about 200,000 abortions and 225,000 unplanned births.  While this all sounds pretty academic, this will have a real life impact for these American citizens.

Bill Status>>

The Unintended Pregnancy Reduction Act was introduced in the Senate on March 29, 2007 and referred to the Committee on Finance.  A companion bill was introduced in the House on May 24, 2007 and referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Take Action>>

Help build support for this vital legislation. Make a phone call today:

• Contact your Senators and ask them to co-sponsor the Unintended Pregnancy Reduction Act (S. 1075).  Click here to find your Senators and their contact information
• Contact your Representative and ask him or her to co-sponsor HR 2523. Click here to find your Representative and his or her contact information.