‘Hey Boss, Get out of my Bedroom,’ Says New Bill in Senate

After five men on the U.S. Supreme Court opened the door for bosses to interfere in women’s personal, private medical decisions about birth control, a new bill up for a vote tomorrow aims to firmly push that door back to its rightful position: solidly shut. 

On July 9, 2014, soon after the Supreme Court ruled against women in the Hobby Lobby case, pro-women’s health lawmakers introduced legislation in the House and Senate that would protect women from bosses at corporations like Hobby Lobby who are trying to deny their employees access to the Affordable Care Act (ACA)’s birth control benefit in their insurance plans. Why the bill? Because this isn’t just about Hobby Lobby. Eighty-two other employers have sued to deny their female employees birth control coverage.

“No woman should lose access to birth control because her boss doesn't approve of it,” said Planned Parenthood Action Fund President Cecile Richards. Nearly 200,000 Planned Parenthood supporters who joined Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s dissent agree. But there is still a fight to be won.

Not My Boss’ Business Bill, in a Bulleted Nutshell

• Why we need this bill: The ACA birth control benefit requires all insurance policies to cover birth control with no out-of-pocket cost to women — but the Supreme Court’s devastating decision in the Hobby Lobby case turns that benefit on its head.
• What the Not My Boss’ Business bill does: It would restore the original legal guarantee that women have access to contraceptive coverage through their employment-based insurance plans.
• More of what the bill does: It also would protect coverage of other health services — like vaccines and critical health screenings (such as for HIV and breast and cervical cancer) — from employer interference.
• Official title: It’s the “Protect Women’s Health from Corporate Interference Act.”
• Sponsors: The bill was introduced by Senators Patty Murray (WA) and Mark Udall (CO), along with Representatives Louise Slaughter (NY-25), Diana DeGette (CO-01), and Jerrold Nadler (NY-10).

Impact of the Not My Boss’ Business Bill

Right after the Senate votes on the bill tomorrow, it will be clear where our elected representatives stand on this critical issue — whether they stand with bosses, or with women. And you can be sure that the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, along with our supporters across the country, will hold lawmakers accountable for their decisions. Indeed, polling shows that the public overwhelmingly supports the birth control benefit by a nearly two-to-one margin. 

Ultimately, the bill would have a broader impact: to ensure that employers cannot force their personal beliefs on their employees’ own health care decisions, and to put decisions about birth control back where they belong: with women and their doctors.

Two Ways You Can Take Action Now

Join Planned Parenthood Action Fund in our fight for the right of every woman to make her own private medical decisions without interference from anyone — not her boss, not politicians, not the Supreme Court.

• TELL CONGRESS to restore coverage for birth control. This petition encourages lawmakers to pass the Not My Boss’ Business bill.
• TEXT “birth control” to our helpline at 69866 if you are being denied coverage or have questions about your access to birth control. 

Tags: Hobby Lobby, Not My Boss' Business, birth control