Bill Text: CA SR55 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Enrolled


Bill Title: Relative to reproductive health

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-08-20 - Read. Adopted. (Ayes 24. Noes 10. Page 4659.) [SR55 Detail]

Download: California-2013-SR55-Enrolled.html
BILL NUMBER: SR 55	ENROLLED
	BILL TEXT

	ADOPTED IN SENATE  AUGUST 20, 2014
	ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY  FEBRUARY 19, 1950
	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 18, 2014
	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 4, 2014

INTRODUCED BY   Senators Jackson, Leno, and Monning

                        JULY 3, 2014

   Relative to reproductive health


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
             HOUSE OR SENATE RESOLUTIONS DO NOT CONTAIN A DIGEST



   WHEREAS, The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) maintains that family planning is one of the 10 great public
health achievements of the 20th century; and
   WHEREAS, The United States Supreme Court has previously recognized
in Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey (1992)
505 U.S. 833, 856, that "  t]he ability of women to participate
equally in the economic and social life of the Nation has been
facilitated by their ability to control their reproductive lives";
and
   WHEREAS, The United States Congress required health plans to cover
all Food and Drug Administration-approved methods of contraception
for women with no out-of-pocket costs as part of the federal Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), and nearly 30 million women
across the United States have already benefited from that provision;
and
   WHEREAS, In Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. (2014) 573 U.S.
____, the Supreme Court concluded that closely-held corporations
cannot be required to provide contraceptive coverage if the
corporations' owners have religious objections to the contraception;
and
   WHEREAS, Women generally have less disposable income to spend on
health care services because of the gender pay gap, the impact of the
decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. will place
additional financial burdens on women already facing the inequity of
wage discrimination; and
   WHEREAS, Nearly two-thirds of minimum wage workers are women, the
impact of the decision in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. is
expected to fall more heavily on low-income women whose access to
health care is frequently limited; and
   WHEREAS, As noted in Justice Ginsburg's dissent, the cost of an
intrauterine device (IUD) "is nearly equivalent to a month's
full-time pay for workers earning the minimum wage"; and
   WHEREAS, The lack of access to contraception leads to an increase
in unintended pregnancies; and
   WHEREAS, According to the CDC's National Center for Health
Statistics, more than 99 percent of women use birth control at some
point in their lives, and approximately 62 percent of all women of
reproductive age are currently using a contraceptive method; and
   WHEREAS, Contraceptive services can serve as a gateway for women
to enter the health care system and obtain preventive medical care;
and
   WHEREAS, "The exemption sought by Hobby Lobby . . . would deny
legions of women who do not hold their employers' beliefs access to
contraceptive coverage that the ACA would otherwise secure," as noted
in Justice Ginsburg's dissent; and
   WHEREAS, Any decisions to use contraceptives should be made by a
woman in consultation with her health care providers and not her
employer; and
   WHEREAS, According to the Guttmacher Institute, State Legislatures
of the United States introduced over 1,100 anti-choice, anti-women
legislative proposals in 2011, designed to place restrictions on
women's health care and erode protections for women and their
families, including restricting access to contraception, imposing
invasive procedures to impede a woman's choice, and allowing
for-profit companies to prohibit choice; and
   WHEREAS, It is the goal of some to deprive women of their
reproductive rights by using the argument of religious freedom and
ignoring women's health, which results in the disparate treatment of
women and undermines individual choice; and
   WHEREAS, There appears to be an organized strategy to upend
long-standing policy in the areas of contraceptive rights and health
care rights for women; and
   WHEREAS, California has always prioritized women's health care,
including passing the groundbreaking Women's Contraception Equity Act
in 1999, which requires employer-based health plans that cover a
variety of prescription drugs to also cover a variety of prescription
contraceptive methods; and
   WHEREAS, There is concern that corporations may attempt to misuse
the precedent set by Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. to unduly
restrict women's health care options or seek religious exemptions
from other generally applicable laws; now, therefore, be it
   Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, That the Senate
of the State of California recognizes the critical importance of a
continued commitment to reproductive health care and access; and be
it further
   Resolved, That the Senate of the State of California urges the
United States Congress to pass and the President of the United States
to sign Senate Bill 2578, commonly referred to as the Not My Boss's
Business Act, which would prevent employers from denying coverage of
contraceptives regardless of their religious views; and be it further

   Resolved, That the Senate of the State of California reaffirms its
support of the decision of Roe v. Wade (1973) 410 U.S. 113, which
acknowledges that reproductive choice is a fundamental right that
belongs to all women; and be it further
   Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this
resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States,
to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority
Leader of the Senate, to each Senator and Representative from
California in the Congress of the United States, and to the author
for appropriate distribution.