Democratic senators on Thursday proposed a bill that would require employers to tell prospective and current workers whether they provide free birth control coverage.
The Preventive Care Coverage Notification Act, sponsored by Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Mark Begich (D-Alaska), would require the government to develop standards that would require businesses to tell workers whether they offer contraception coverage in their health plans.
{mosads}“This bill ensures that employees have the information they need to make smart decisions,” said the lawmakers. “At the very least, we cannot stand by and allow young women or single moms to take a job expecting to get the basic insurance coverage that the law requires, only to find out too late that the corporation is denying her that coverage.”
The legislation specifically says companies should disclose what services guaranteed under the law they won’t cover, including contraception. It does not apply, however, to religious employers and other nonprofit religious organizations that have received an exemption or accommodation for their coverage limitations.
The bill is in response to a recent Supreme Court ruling that some “closely held” for-profit companies, such as Hobby Lobby, cannot be required to provide free contraception coverage if it violates their religious beliefs.
The bill would retroactively apply to businesses starting on July 1.