Health News / August 2007
Prevention First
 Louise M. Slaughter
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With hope and the advantage of the legislature’s change in party perspective, Representative Louise M. Slaughter, Chairwoman of the House Rules Committee, has reintroduced The Prevention First Act (H.R. 819), legislation she believes will “help protect women’s reproductive health, reduce unintended pregnancies, decrease the spread of STDs, and give women the tools they need to make the best decisions possible for themselves.”
The Prevention First Act was originally introduced in the 108th and 109th Congress by the New York democrat as a way to change the debate on abortion by focusing on preventing unintended pregnancies. Senator Harry Reid of Nevada has introduced an identical senate companion bill.
The act is an omnibus family planning and women’s health initiative that seeks to expand access to preventive reproductive health care services and education programs, help reduce unintended pregnancies and the need for abortion, and prevent the spread of STDs. The Prevention First Act combines eight bills into a legislative package increasing access to contraception and family planning services.
It authorizes $700 million in funding for Title X women’s clinics and requiring private health plans to cover FDA-approved prescription contraceptives and related medical services. In addition to directing the development and dissemination of information concerning emergency contraception to health care providers and the public, it requires that hospitals receiving federal funds provide victims of sexual assault with information and access to emergency contraception.
The Prevention First Act provides funding to public and private entities to promote the establishment or expansion of their teenage pregnancy prevention programs. It also provides for comprehensive, medically accurate sex education programs that teach young people about abstinence, health and contraceptives. Moreover, Prevention First requires federally funded programs distributing information on contraceptive to ensure the information is medically accurate and includes health benefits and failure rates.
According to Representative Slaughter, “The U.S. has one of the highest rates of unintended pregnancies among industrialized nations. The Center for Disease Control reports that treatment for STD infections costs the nation $15.5 billion each year. Nearly half of new STD cases are among people ages 15-24, even though they make up only a quarter of the sexually active population. If we want to reduce the number of abortions and the spread of STDs in this country, we must empower women through education and access to contraception.”
She says, “For most women, including women who want to have children, contraception isn’t an option; it’s a basic health care necessity. And, contraceptive use saves scarce public health dollars. For every $1 spent on providing family planning services, an estimated $3.80 is saved in Medicaid expenditures for pregnancy-related and newborn care. Many poor and low-income women cannot afford to purchase contraceptive services and supplies on their own. Half of all women who are sexually active, but do not want to get pregnant, need publicly funded services to help them gain access to public health programs like Medicaid and Title X. These programs provide high-quality family planning services and other preventive health care, like pap smears, to uninsured or underinsured women who lack access to health care or alternative birth control options. Each year, publicly funded family planning services help prevent an estimated one million unplanned pregnancies and 630,000 abortions. Unfortunately, the programs are struggling to meet a growing demand for subsidized family planning services without corresponding increases in funding.”
The Prevention First Act authorizes increased funding for Title X clinics and strengthens states’ coverage of Medicaid family planning services by ensuring that services remain accessible to low-income women. It requires states to extend coverage for family planning services and supplies to women who would be entitled to Medicaid funded prenatal, labor, delivery and postpartum care if they became pregnant.
According to Representative Slaughter, “Improved access to emergency contraception also goes a long way toward reducing the staggering rates of unintended pregnancy and abortion in this country. Taken within 72 hours of unprotected sex, emergency contraception can prevent 89 percent of unintended pregnancies. The Alan Guttmacher Institute estimates that increased use of EC accounted for up to 43 percent of the total decline in abortion rates between 1994 and 2000. And, emergency contraception is often the only contraceptive option for the 300,000 women who are reported raped each year.”
Though contraceptives can enhance women’s health, prevent unintended pregnancy, and reduce the need for abortion, many insurance policies exclude the coverage. Presently, 21 states require insurers to provide contraceptive coverage if they cover other prescription drugs; 29 states do not.
Representative Slaughter says, “Out of pocket expenses for contraception can be costly. Women of reproductive age are spending 68% more in out-of-pocket health care costs than men, much of it due to reproductive health-related supplies and services. The Prevention First Act requires that private health plans cover FDA-approved prescription contraceptives and related medical services.”
She says, “By emphasizing prevention first, this legislation is intended to help protect women’s reproductive health, reduce unintended pregnancies, decrease the spread of STDs, and give women the knowledge they need to make informed decisions about their reproductive health.”
H.R 819 is currently under review in three committees: Energy and Commerce, Ways and Means and Education and Labor.
For more information, contact Representative Louise Slaughter, United States House of Representatives,2469 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington , DC 20515, (202) 225-3615 or visit www.louise.house.gov.
Copyright © 2007 A Woman's View. All rights reserved.
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