MAINE, USA — According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 64.9 percent of women aged 15 to 49 in the United States were using contraception between 2015 and 2017. Experts say there are more women who would like to but don't have access to that health care.
That's why Maine is looking to expand that access with a new bill, by offering birth control without requiring a prescription from a doctor.
It's already being done in 21 states and Washington, D.C. Women are able to go into the pharmacy to be evaluated and eventually be prescribed a contraceptive.
"We would certainly not be among the first, but we wouldn't be among the last," Matthew Marston from the Maine Society of Health System Pharmacists said.
This isn't the first time Maine has tried to pass a similar bill. Sen. Eric Brakey, R-Auburn, first proposed this six years ago. At the time, the committee decided to wait for guidance from the federal government on how to move forward and make birth control more accessible. But there hasn't been action in the last six years, so Brakey is proposing it again.
"This is a commonsense way we can get government out of the way to increase birth control for women," Brakey said.
The Maine Society of Health System Pharmacists is advocating for this bill to pass. It said healthcare is already challenging to access for many people.
"Pharmacies represent one of the most accessible forms of health care," Marston added.
Marston went on to say this bill would work for things like the birth control pill, patch, or insertable rings. But other forms of birth control that need to be administered in a doctor's office, like an IUD, wouldn't be available.
Marston said this would make life a lot easier for women looking for contraceptives.
"Many women live closer to their local pharmacy than they do the next available health care facility, so it works to remove barriers and access," Marston said.
"Our pharmacists are already there to consult on things like this. We are just taking one extra step out of the process," Brakey added.
No one testified against this bill on Thursday, and now that the committee has heard from the public on the topic, it will head to a work session.