Barriers to Reproductive Care

Women continue to face restrictions when they try to access the reproductive health care they need. We're working to defend access to reproductive care and to oppose challenges such as pharmacy refusals and religious restrictions by those imposing their beliefs on women.

Highlights

Fact Sheet | Requiring Crisis Pregnancy Centers to Disclose Limits on Care Is Part of a Long Tradition of Protecting Women’s Decision-making and Access to Reproductive Health Care

April 9, 2013

Women face many obstacles to receiving comprehensive, affordable, quality health care, including when individuals and institutions refuse to provide health care services.   Some even go so far as to refuse to inform women about their health care options or even to notify women that there are certain services or information that they will not provide.  This prevents women from participating fully in their own medical decision-making.  Not only are their rights compromised, their health may be harmed.

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Legal Briefs & Testimony | NWLC Amicus Briefs Supporting the Contraceptive Coverage Benefit

April 30, 2013

The Center is filing friend of the court briefs in lawsuits challenging the federal contraceptive coverage benefit, brought by employers who want to deny their employees this important benefit.  These cases involve suits brought under the First Amendment to the US Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.  These cases will decide whether a boss’s religious beliefs trump women’s health and women’s access to the health care they need.

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Fact Sheet | If Opponents of Birth Control Have Their Way, Millions of Women Would Lose Access to Birth Control

September 14, 2012

Opponents of birth control in Congress are working night and day to enact new laws and policies that would deny millions of women access to birth control -- including access already guaranteed to women by law. Thankfully, so far, supporters of birth control have stopped the worst of these Congressional attacks.  Although the anti-birth control efforts have taken several forms, they all would have the same effect: taking birth control coverage away from women nationwide. A comparison of opponents’ and supporters’ legislative priorities makes the difference clear: while opponents of contraception would take it away from women, supporters work to ensure that women have access to affordable birth control.

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Fact Sheet | Accessing Non-Prescription Emergency Contraception: The Basics

April 22, 2012

This factsheet provides basic information on types of emergency contraception and answers frequently asked questions regarding obtaining and using EC. 

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More Resources

Legal Briefs & Testimony | NWLC Amicus Briefs Supporting the Contraceptive Coverage Benefit

April 30, 2013

The Center is filing friend of the court briefs in lawsuits challenging the federal contraceptive coverage benefit, brought by employers who want to deny their employees this important benefit.  These cases involve suits brought under the First Amendment to the US Constitution and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.  These cases will decide whether a boss’s religious beliefs trump women’s health and women’s access to the health care they need.

 Read more...

Fact Sheet | State Bans on Insurance Coverage of Abortion Endanger Women’s Health and Take Health Benefits Away from Women

April 26, 2013

The health care law goes a long way toward improving women’s health and addressing the discrimination women have faced in the health insurance market. Unfortunately however, the health care law explicitly allows states to pass laws banning private insurance coverage of abortion in any exchange set up in their state. State politicians who want abortion to be illegal have wasted no time pushing bans on insurance coverage of abortion, making abortion unaffordable and interfering with a woman’s ability to make her own health care decisions.

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Fact Sheet | The “Peace Corps Equity Act” Corrects a Health Care Coverage Inequity for Peace Corps Volunteers

April 25, 2013

Peace Corps volunteers are provided NO coverage for abortion, even in the case of life endangerment to the woman or if she is a survivor of rape or incest. The Peace Corps Equity Act of 2013, sponsored by Senator Lautenberg, would ensure that Peace Corps Volunteers are treated the same as other women with federal health insurance.

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Fact Sheet | Requiring Crisis Pregnancy Centers to Disclose Limits on Care Is Part of a Long Tradition of Protecting Women’s Decision-making and Access to Reproductive Health Care

April 09, 2013

Women face many obstacles to receiving comprehensive, affordable, quality health care, including when individuals and institutions refuse to provide health care services.   Some even go so far as to refuse to inform women about their health care options or even to notify women that there are certain services or information that they will not provide.  This prevents women from participating fully in their own medical decision-making.  Not only are their rights compromised, their health may be harmed.

 Read more...

Fact Sheet | Emergency Contraception

April 03, 2013

This factsheet provides important information on Emergency Contraception.

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