Attorney General Jay Jones and Coalition of Attorneys General Challenge Trump Administration Effort to Undermine Birth Control Coverage

Attorney General Jay Jones and Coalition of Attorneys General Challenge Trump Administration Effort to Undermine Birth Control Coverage

Richmond, VA - Attorney General Jay Jones has joined a coalition of 21 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief challenging the Trump Administration’s 2017 and 2018 regulations that undermine the Affordable Care Act’s guarantee of no-cost contraception coverage through employer health care plans. The regulations expand exemptions and allow employers to strip workers of guaranteed coverage for birth control and other contraceptive care and services.

In the brief, Attorney General Jones and the coalition urge the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit to affirm the District Court’s ruling that the regulations are unlawful and to block the federal government’s attempt to dismantle a core consumer protection under federal law.

“The Affordable Care Act guarantees that employer health plans cover contraception without cost sharing. Donald Trump’s administration attempted to rewrite that law by creating sweeping exemptions allowing employers to deny birth control coverage outright,” said Attorney General Jay Jones. “This effort is about nothing more than dismantling a core protection of the Affordable Care Act, eroding coverage, and shifting the cost of contraception onto women, families, and states like Virginia. When the federal government ignores the law and undermines access to basic health care, states have a responsibility to stand up. Virginia is doing exactly that to ensure that Donald Trump’s unlawful rollback of contraceptive coverage does not stand.”

In the brief, Attorney General Jones and the coalition argue that the regulations threaten contraceptive coverage for hundreds of thousands of women nationwide and put their health and the economic and public health of states at risk. Today more than 80 percent of women ages 18 to 49 report using some form of contraception within the past year. With contraception costing an average of $584 per user annually, the regulations could shift an estimated $73.8 million in costs onto individuals who rely on contraceptive care. These costs would create significant barriers to accessing safe and effective health services. The coalition also argues that states such as Virginia will face increased financial strain as they are forced to spend millions of dollars to provide replacement contraceptive care through publicly funded health programs.

Access to birth control and contraceptive care has already been reduced since these regulations were first implemented and the harm will only worsen if they remain in place amid a rapidly changing reproductive health landscape. Many clinics that provide essential reproductive health services have lost funding in recent years, shrinking access to care in communities across the country. At the same time, a wave of abortion restrictions following the overturning of Roe v. Wade has further limited options for women experiencing unintended pregnancies, making reliable access to contraception more critical than ever.

The coalition’s brief also explains that restricting access to contraception will deepen long-standing disparities in health care access. Communities of color and lower income communities are disproportionately likely to live in “contraceptive deserts,” areas without reasonable access to the full range of contraceptive services. Millions of women across the country live in these areas and already face significant barriers to obtaining birth control. Policies that allow employers to deny coverage will only worsen those disparities and place the greatest burden on working families.

Attorney General Jones and the coalition urge the Court to affirm the District Court’s judgment striking down the Trump Administration’s regulations and protect access to birth control and contraceptive care for hundreds of thousands of women across the country.

Joining Attorney General Jones in filing the brief are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.

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