Duckworth, Hirono, Underwood Reignite Push to Expand Access to Contraceptive Care for Veterans

Duckworth, Hirono, Underwood Reignite Push to Expand Access to Contraceptive Care for Veterans

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI) and U.S. Representative Lauren Underwood (D-IL-14), today reintroduced legislation that would improve Veterans' access to contraception and increase efficiency and cost-effectiveness for contraceptive products at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Access to Contraception Expansion for Veterans (ACE Veterans) Act would allow Veterans to request a full-year supply of contraceptive products from the VA-the largest integrated healthcare system in the United States-and require VA providers to inform patients of their option to request a full year of contraception at the time of the prescription being issued.

"Our women Veterans who wore the uniform and made daily sacrifices to help keep us safe should never have to worry about their access to contraception," said Duckworth. "By allowing Veterans to request a full-year supply of contraceptives, our legislation would help protect our heroes' right to decide if and when they choose to have a child and keep them in control of their own bodies, careers and futures. I'm proud to reignite this effort with Senator Hirono and Congresswoman Underwood to help Veterans get the basic care they need while also saving taxpayer dollars and reducing unintended pregnancies."

"As the Trump Administration and Republicans across the country work to limit or ban access to contraception, legislation like the ACE Veterans Act is more important than ever," said Senator Hirono. "Our veterans shouldn't have to face barriers to accessing contraception or experience gaps between prescription refills. I'm proud to join my colleagues in reintroducing this bill to help ensure the people who bravely served our country can access the critical preventive care they need."

"Many veterans, especially younger women veterans, rely on the Veterans Health Administration for contraceptive care, but are unable to get the reliable and uninterrupted access to contraception that many civilians receive-an essential piece of reproductive health care," said Underwood. "The ACE Veterans Act guarantees veterans the option to receive a full-year supply of contraceptives through VHA, rather than being limited to a 3-month supply-a critical step that will improve health outcomes for women, and lower costs for the VA."

Missing more than two consecutive contraceptive pills can increase a woman's chance of contraceptive failure and the potential for unintended pregnancy, which has been linked to adverse health effects including maternal depression, intimate partner violence, low birth weight, preterm birth and infant mortality. In 2022, the VA expanded the amount of oral contraceptives patients can receive to a 12-month supply-this marked important progress, but the policy still allows for more restrictive dispensing limitations, depending on the type of contraceptive.

The VA's current policy also doesn't require its providers to inform patients they have the option to receive a 12-month supply of certain contraceptives at the time the prescription is issued. By addressing these two weaknesses in the current VA policy, the ACE Veterans Act would help women Veterans get the contraceptive care they need and reduce their rate of unintended pregnancies-improving the reliability of our heroes' health care and saving a substantial amount of taxpayer dollars.

Along with Duckworth and Hirono, the legislation is cosponsored in the Senate by U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), John Fetterman (D-PA), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH).

The legislation is endorsed by AMVETS, Service Womens Action Network, Women Veterans Interactive and the National Women's Law Center.

Full text of the legislation is available on Senator Duckworth's website.

Duckworth has been a fierce leader and advocate for improving our Veterans' and servicemembers' access to the care they need. Earlier this month, she sent a letter to VA Secretary Collins demanding he block ICE from stealing VA resources at Hines VA Hospital in Chicago. Last month, Duckworth joined U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY) in reintroducing legislation to help make it easier for our Veterans who struggle with infertility to build their families. Earlier this year, Duckworth railed against the Trump Administration for indiscriminately firing Veterans Crisis Line workers and introduced her Protect Veteran Jobs Act with U.S. Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ) to reinstate the thousands of Veterans who were fired in Trump's mass layoffs-an effort Republicans shamefully blocked in March.

-30-