It needed 60 votes to proceed to a vote on the underlying legislation.
Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine) were the only GOP members to vote with Democrats.
Republicans argued the bill was unnecessary because access to birth control is already protected under Supreme Court precedent. They also said the bill was overly broad and would have allowed Democrats to mandate access to abortion pills along with birth control.
The legislation from Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and other Democrats is part of an election year push to focus on reproductive rights to highlight the differences between the two parties.
The contraception vote was expected to fail, but Democrats want to hold Republicans accountable for their opposition, especially as the GOP struggles with how to message its stance on reproductive rights in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade.
“Today was not a show vote, this was a show us who you are vote, and Senate Republicans showed the American people exactly who they are,” Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said following the vote.
As part of that effort, Schumer said the Senate may also take up legislation to protect access to in vitro fertilization next week.
“This is the second time since the Supreme Court’s extreme decision to overturn Roe v. Wade that Congressional Republicans have refused to safeguard this fundamental right for women in every state. It’s unacceptable,” President Biden said in a statement.
“My administration alongside Democrats in Congress will continue to fight to protect access to reproductive health care and keep taking action to strengthen access to affordable, high-quality contraception.”
