FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - August 1, 2012

Contact: 202-293-3114

NFPRHA, Nation’s Leading Advocate for Publicly Funded Family Planning, Celebrates Start of Women’s Health Preventive Benefits Coverage

Critical Part of the Affordable Care Act Will Greatly Expand Access to Contraception, Cancer Screenings, Inter-Personal and Domestic Violence Counseling, and More
 

Today, the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA) celebrates the implementation of a critical provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for women and their families: access to routine preventive health care services, including contraceptive coverage and counseling, well-woman visits, STD testing, and domestic violence counseling, at no additional cost to women with commercial insurance. The start of this coverage is a critical first phase to ensuring affordable health care for many more women.

“Today, many more women will gain access to contraception and other preventive care, at no additional cost, removing a barrier that has routinely prevented them from seeking necessary health services,” said Clare Coleman, President & CEO of NFPRHA, “The new coverage benefit is a victory for women and it is good news for family planning providers. Studies show that even nominal cost-sharing discourages women from seeking preventive care – the family planning network is confident that this new benefit will encourage patients to see the important preventive services they need to be healthy.”

Under the federal ACA, starting today, new health insurance plans must cover well-woman visits, contraceptive methods and counseling, screening for gestational diabetes, human papillomavirus (HPV) testing, counseling for sexually transmitted infections, counseling and screening for human immune-deficiency virus (HIV), breastfeeding support, supplies and counseling, and screening and counseling for inter-personal and domestic violence without beneficiaries meeting a deductible or providing a co-pay.

Despite this great victory, there is more to be done. Funding for family planning continues to be the target of political attacks in Congress. Recently, a House appropriations subcommittee passed a bill that eliminated funding for the Title X family planning program, which subsidizes health care for uninsured or underinsured people, as well as many other programs important to sexual and reproductive health.

“While this new coverage benefit will help millions of insured women who need affordable health care, public funding to help the most vulnerable access these basic preventive health services continues to sustain politically motivated attacks at the federal and state levels. NFPRHA will keep fighting to ensure that all women, regardless of income, have access to basic health care. That’s just good public health,” concluded Coleman.

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The National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association (NFPRHA) is a membership organization representing the nation's family planning providers—nurses, nurse practitioners, administrators and other key health care professionals. For 41 years, NFPRHA members have provided high-quality preventive health care services in thousands of health centers to millions of women and men annually. Everyday our members help people act responsibly, stay healthy and plan for strong families.

National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association

1025 Vermont Ave. NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC 20005
Phone: 202-293-3114  |  info@nfprha.org

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