Harrisburg, PA − September 28, 2026 – This morning, Senator Amanda M. Cappelletti (D-17, Montgomery/Delaware), Senator Maria Collett (D-12, Montgomery), and Senator Judy Schwank (D-11, Berks), rallied with First Lady Lori Shapiro, Pennsylvania House colleagues, national experts, and Planned Parenthood advocates to call for action on Senate Bill 1112.
The legislation would require all insurers to provide coverage for contraceptives, eliminate most co-payments for related coverage, remove pre-authorization requirements for certain contraceptives, and authorize insurers to cover up to 12 months of birth control at one time.
“The reproductive healthcare landscape right now is a scary place for Americans,” said Senator Cappelletti, Co-Chair of the Pennsylvania Women’s Health Caucus. “The federal government has made it clear they are willing to go to extreme lengths to threaten our access to care. Pennsylvania must respond to show our communities we will protect their health and wellbeing when other officials in Washington are too busy buying into conspiracy theories.”
Following the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court ruling, nationwide threats to family planning clinics have increased. Prior to Dobbs, publicly funded family planning clinics provided contraceptive care to one quarter of all U.S. women receiving such care. Many of these clinics have been forced to close their doors, or struggle to operate as the Trump administration withholds Title X and Medicaid funding. The Republican Federal Spending Bill—H.R. 1—passed in 2025 has posed additional threats to Medicaid, which covers FDA-approved contraceptives for people in all 50 states.
“Americans across the political spectrum agree that people should be able to access contraception and decide for themselves whether and when to start or grow a family,” said Dana Singiser, co-founder of the Contraceptive Access Initiative. “At a moment when misinformation about contraception is increasingly driving the national debate, it has never been more important that people have accurate information, real access to the methods that are right for them, insurance coverage for over-the-counter contraception and clarity about their rights. I’m grateful to Pennsylvania’s leaders for shining a light on an issue that matters to families across the Commonwealth and the country.”
Contraceptives offer a variety of uses. While they are commonly used to prevent unintended pregnancies, forms of contraceptives serve a number of medical purposes, often including hormone regulation, family planning, and treatment for severe conditions like endometriosis, dysmenorrhea, and Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (previously known as PCOS).
“While out-of-touch rightwing politicians continue to threaten our essential healthcare freedoms, we gathered today to share a clear message: we will not back down in our fight to protect and expand Pennsylvanians’ access to contraceptives,” said Senator Maria Collett. “Our colleagues in the House have taken action. The question now is whether or not Senate Republicans have the courage and the common sense to stand with the majority of Pennsylvanians who agree that birth control access should not be a partisan issue.”
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives has already taken steps to protect access to contraceptives. Representative Mary Jo Daley (D-168, Montgomery) has introduced House Bill 2605, which would prohibit the Commonwealth from interfering with the use of medically appropriate methods of contraception or fertility treatments. In May 2025, the House also voted 116-87 in support of Representative Leanne Krueger’s (D-161, Delaware) House Bill 1140, companion legislation to SB 1112.
“House Democrats have been working hard to champion contraceptive access for all Pennsylvanians by passing bills that protect our right to full reproductive healthcare. This includes HB1140, which has passed the House two sessions in a row with bipartisan support, but the Senate has failed to move the bill,” said Representative Leanne Krueger. “With a federal government that is openly hostile to reproductive rights, we must enshrine protections in state law to ensure access to contraceptives, safeguard privacy, and remove barriers to essential reproductive health tools. This is the time for action.”
House Bill 1140 has been stalled in the Senate Banking and Insurance committee since June 3, 2025. The committee is chaired by Republican Senator Chris Gebhard.
“All women in this Commonwealth should have access to full reproductive healthcare, and that includes access to contraception,” said Representative Gina H. Curry, (D-164, Delaware), who co-sponsored House Bill 1140 and serves a co-chair of the Pennsylvania Women’s Health Caucus. “This is about agency—the power to make decisions about our own bodies, our families and our futures. Women deserve the freedom to determine if and when motherhood is part of their journey and to have access to the healthcare that makes that choice real. When cost, geography or other systemic barriers stand in the way, they limit not only healthcare, but opportunity. Reproductive equity means removing those barriers so every woman has the power and resources to determine the course of her own life and family.”
Governor Josh Shapiro has continued to fight for Pennsylvanians to have access to the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare, and polling shows strong bipartisan support for increasing access to contraception. After decisive action in the House, Senate Democrats, advocates, and partners are calling on the Senate Republican majority to finally send these bills to the Governor’s desk.
“Access to quality health care is something every woman deserves, but we know that in some communities access to health care can be a real challenge, especially for women in rural communities,” said First Lady Lori Shapiro. “Contraceptives play an essential role in women’s health care and making sure they are accessible is just plain common sense.”
“A lack of access to contraception affects every Pennsylvanian, whether we realize it or not. We have an opportunity to follow the example set in the House of Representatives and advance legislation that protects access to essential reproductive health care,” said Senator Schwank. “Ensuring that all Pennsylvanians can obtain the contraception they need to live healthy lives is good policy and the right thing to do.”
The full list of speakers from the September 28 press conference included:
- Senator Amanda M. Cappelletti, Senate District 17
- Representative Leanne Krueger, House District 161
- Representative Gina H. Curry, House District 164
- Dana Singiser, Co-founder of the Contraceptive Access Initiative and former special assistant to President Obama
- Senator Maria Collett, Senate District 12
- First Lady Lori Shapiro
- Lizz Bender, Advocate with Planned Parenthood
- Senator Judy Schwank, Senate District 11
Watch the full press conference here.
Supporters of this legislative initiative can reach out to their Pennsylvania State Senators to ask them to sign on in support of Senate Bill 1112. Find out who your state Senator is here.
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