For Immediate Release:
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
(RALEIGH) Attorney General Josh Stein today urged the federal government to immediately comply with a court-ordered injunction blocking its attempts to strip access to cost-free contraceptive coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Despite a January injunction, the federal government has not informed the public about the injunction and their continued access to contraceptive coverage.
“I fought to protect women’s access to contraception, and I won,” said Attorney General Josh Stein. “The federal government needs to follow the court’s order so that women, not their employers, can make their own birth control decisions.”
The Trump administration unveiled final rules in November 2018 that would allow employers to deny women access to contraceptive coverage. Attorney General Stein was part of a coalition of 14 attorneys general who secured an injunction in January to prevent the implementation of these rules. However, The Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Labor websites still state that employers can opt out of providing contraceptive coverage, and another HHS webpage does not include contraceptive coverage on a list of mandated preventive services under the ACA.
Nearly two million women in North Carolina have benefited from the ACA’s contraceptive coverage requirement. More than 70 percent of North Carolina women aged 18-49 use contraception, including nearly 80 percent who are at risk of unintended pregnancy.
Attorney General Stein was joined in sending today’s letter by the Attorneys General of California, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.
A copy of the letter is available here.
Contact:
Laura Brewer (919) 716-6484
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