May 16, 2023 10:00 a.m.

On Monday, U.S. Senator Ron Wyden said he and Senate colleagues have introduced legislation that would ensure military families in Oregon and nationwide receive the quality reproductive health care they deserve.

Wyden said, “Military families in Oregon and nationwide deserve access to equitable reproductive health care and contraception – without having to pay hundreds of dollars per year out of pocket”. Wyden said, “I’ll fight with all my heart to ensure military families have the benefits they have earned, which should include crucial reproductive care”.

Wyden’s release said the Access to Contraception for Servicemembers and Dependents Act would bring health care provided to servicemembers in line with current law for civilian populations by ensuring those who receive health care through the military have access to all forms of contraception approved by the Food and Drug Administration with no health insurance co-pay. The legislation would also guarantee access to emergency contraception for survivors of sexual assault upon their request. It would also require the Department of Defense to develop a comprehensive family planning education program.

Wyden said the Department of Defense provides health care to millions of women of reproductive age, including servicemembers, guardsmen, reservists, spouses and dependents. Although the Affordable Care Act guarantees that employer-sponsored and marketplace health plans cover preventative services for civilians without cost sharing, including all FDA-approved contraceptive methods, counseling and related services, these protections do not apply to coverage through TRICARE, a health care program for uniformed servicemembers and their families. Wyden said that due to this disparity, active service members and dependents of servicemembers are particularly impacted.

The text of the bill is linked: https://www.shaheen.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/access_to_contraception_for_servicemembers_and_dependents_act1.pdf