March 26, 2021

Wyden, Merkley, Colleagues Reintroduce Bill to Guarantee Abortion Coverage Regardless of a Patient’s Insurance

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley said today they have reintroduced a bill to guarantee abortion coverage—regardless of how a patient gets their health insurance.

“The government should not have control of women’s bodies,” Wyden said. “Ending the unconscionable Hyde Amendment is a key to protecting a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion, and essential to ensuring access to abortions for all women no matter their income or zip code. Abortion and other reproductive decisions are health care, and health care choices ought to be made by women with the help of the doctors they trust. End of story.”

"I believe in a society where everyone—regardless of the color of their skin, zip code, or income—has the same right to high-quality health care," said Merkley. "That basic human right shouldn't depend on whether or how you get your health insurance. I oppose rationing health care, including reproductive health, which is why I support this legislation."

Today, abortion coverage restrictions like the Hyde Amendment hurts more than 13 million women—primarily people struggling to make ends meet, women of color, young people, and immigrants. These harmful policies make it harder, if not impossible, for patients to afford an abortion or find a local provider. Abortion coverage restrictions also compound the harms from systemic racism, economic insecurity, and immigration status—ultimately denying millions of patients their constitutional right to an abortion.

The Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Care (EACH) Act would end this injustice and help ensure women don’t just have the right to abortion on paper, but also in practice. This bold legislation finally ends the decades-long restriction on abortion for patients on government sponsored health care plans and helps ensure every woman can get the reproductive health care they need—no matter their income, race, zip-code, or how they get health care.

Recent polling data also show that 62 percent of voters support lifting federal abortion coverage restrictions and believe Medicaid should cover abortion.

The EACH Act was introduced by Senators Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii. Along with Wyden and Merkley, the Senate bill was co-sponsored by Senators Cortez Masto, D-Nev., Shaheen, D-N.H., Klobuchar, D-Minn., Blumenthal, D-Conn., Brown, D-Ohio, Warren, D-Mass., Gillibrand, D-N.Y., Whitehouse, D-R.I., Rosen, D-Nev., Feinstein, D-Calif., Hassan, D-N.H., Bennet, D-Colo., Markey, D-Mass., Smith, D-Minn., Murphy, D-Conn., Booker, D-N.J., Van Hollen, D-Md., and Sanders, I-Vt.

Bill text can be found HERE.