Don’t Detour Family Planning

Want to see the number of unintended pregnancies reduced? Here are four easy ways to ensure family planning wins when Congress reconciles House and Senate versions of the Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act.

With what could be shoulder-straightening acceleration in the movement toward universal reproductive health care access, the US Senate and the House passed Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act bills (CHAMP) at the beginning of August.

The good news and opportunity for maternal and child health advocates is that the House version includes Unintended Pregnancy Prevention Act language! The Senate edition does not.

Although either bill, if adopted, would face a "road closed ahead" veto threat from President Bush, long before Congress arrives at that Presidential detour, a conference committee must reconcile the two plans. To be sure our elected officials don't take a wrong turn or lose their way, it's time for you to give them directions.

CHAMP is a critical bill reauthorizing the State Children's Health Insurance Program that must be acted upon before the end of September. House members who are supportive of expanding access to reproductive health care have selected House Resolution 3162 as a vehicle to carry us down the road toward universal access to confidential reproductive health care. Riding with H.R. 3162 are provisions of the Unintended Pregnancy Reduction Act which allow states to easily include or to continue (as in twenty-six states) providing expanded access to federally funded family planning services in their Medicaid programs. There are also provisions that would reduce burdensome identity and citizenship documentation requirements for minors so they can more readily and confidentially receive family planning services.

Because the Senate CHAMP language does not include family planning access expansions, it is essential that your senators and representatives hear from you right now so they know how important it is that the conference committee's final product expands access to family planning services. To prevent unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, and to reduce abortions, there is nothing less expensive or more effective than free access to confidential reproductive health care. Expanded Medicaid-supported access to reproductive health care through the current (more cumbersome) Family Planning Waiver process is already reducing unintended pregnancies and abortions, improving maternal and child health, and saving taxpayer dollars in more than half of the states, with the adoption of the House CHAMP bill language, we could do much more and we could do it with much less administrative red tape.

Four steps to help the conference committee find its way:

Let legislators know that the family planning expansion and access provisions of H.R. 3162 must be included in the final CHAMP bill because they will expand access to preventive health care and improve maternal and child health outcomes while saving taxpayer dollars.

1) Contact members of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on Health and in the Senate Finance Committee. Use the "contact us" link at the House Energy and Commerce Committee subcommittee on Health's website here.

2) Contact members of Senate Finance Committee here.

3) Visit the Write Your Representative website and the Find Your Senator website.

4) Ask friends and organizations who support expanded access to primary care, including reproductive care, to contact congress. Direct them to this website and ask them to help spread the word.

Visit our website at www.FPHS.org if we can be of help or to learn more about us. If you do contact your legislator, let us know at [email protected]. Thanks for your help!