Missouri House passes bill to expand access to birth control

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri’s Republican-controlled House has voted to increase women’s access to birth control by allowing pharmacists to prescribe oral contraceptives.

Tuesday’s 97-50 vote in the House sends the measure to the Senate.

Under Republican Rep. Sheila Solon’s bill, those younger than 18 would have to show pharmacists a doctor’s previous prescription.

The bill would allow women to receive birth-control prescriptions in one-year increments after their first three-month prescription. Women would need to visit a doctor within three years of their pharmacists’ first prescription to continue receiving contraception.

Solon said greater access to birth control will reduce abortions, adding women should be trusted to weigh the risks of birth control.

Opponents argued birth control can have negative side-effects and women should visit doctors more frequently.