Senate Could Have Protected the Right to Contraception Today — but Senate Republicans Blocked Bipartisan Effort

WASHINGTON, DC - Once again, politicians hostile to sexual and reproductive health are showing us exactly who they are. Today, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) brought forward the Right to Contraception Act — a bill reintroduced by Sens. Markey (D-MA), Hirono (D-HI), and Duckworth (D-IL) — that would protect the right to birth control.

This seems like an easy “yes” vote, right? Since the vast majority of Americans believe birth control should be easier to get?

Nope.

Statement from Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO, Planned Parenthood Action Fund:

“This is diabolical. These politicians who fight with every fiber of their being to ban birth control and abortion — who believe they have a right to control our bodies — continue to show us that they don’t care about protecting people’s health and well-being. They obviously have no understanding of the many reasons people are prescribed birth control, including managing conditions such as endometriosis, PCOS, hormone therapy, period cramps, acne, and the lowering of risk of cervical and ovarian cancer, to name just a few. And that’s why politicians have no business inserting themselves in medical decisions.”

The United States has a long history of denying reproductive freedom through racism, discrimination, and coercion — stripping people with disabilities and Black, Indigenous, and immigrant communities of their rights. Protecting access to birth control methods, including emergency contraception, is essential to ensuring all people can make decisions about their own bodies, lives, and futures.

So, if you’re going to mess with people’s access to essential, time-sensitive health care, we’re going to name names and demand that, in the future, they vote in line with the majority of Americans who support sexual and reproductive health and rights. Here’s a list of all the senators who voted against protecting access to birth control:

Alabama

• Tommy Tuberville

 Arkansas

• John Boozman
• Tom Cotton

 Florida

• Marco Rubio
• Rick Scott

 Idaho

• Mike Crapo
• Jim Risch

 Indiana

• Todd Young 

 Iowa

• Chuck Grassley
• Joni Ernst

 Kansas

• Roger Marshall

 Kentucky

• Mitch McConnell
• Rand Paul

 Louisiana

• Bill Cassidy

 Montana

• Steve Daines

 Mississippi

• Roger Wicker
• Cindy Hyde-Smith

 Missouri

• Josh Hawley
• Eric Schmitt 

 Nebraska

• Deb Fisher
• Pete Ricketts

 North Carolina

• Thom Tillis
• Ted Budd

 North Dakota

• John Hoeven
• Kevin Cramer

 Oklahoma

• James Lankford
• Markwayne Mullin

 South Carolina

• Tim Scott

 South Dakota

• John Thune
• Mike Rounds

 Tennessee

• Marsha Blackburn

 Texas

• John Cornyn
• Ted Cruz

 Utah

• Mike Lee

 West Virginia

• Shelley Moore Capito

 Wisconsin

• Ron Johnson

 Wyoming

• John Barrasso
• Cynthia Lummis

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Planned Parenthood Action Fund is an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit membership organization formed as the advocacy and political arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. The Action Fund engages in educational, advocacy, and limited electoral activity, including grassroots organizing, legislative advocacy, and voter education.