GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Wisconsin legislators are making strides to expand birth control access to anyone over the age of 18.
The new bill would allow pharmacists to prescribe hormonal contraceptive patches and birth control pills after patients fill out a self-assessment and undergo blood pressure screenings. Pharmacist John Lemke likes the idea.
“I like the bill for several reasons, it not only increases access, there are some other things that are beneficial. There are studies out there that show when contraception is prescribed by a pharmacist there is better monitoring and plus the drug interactions are better when it’s prescribed in a pharmacy,” Lemke says.
There has been pushback from anti-abortion groups, claiming it encourages sex before marriage. But Republican Representative Joel Kitchens thinks it will help reduce unplanned pregnancies.
“Currently women can only get birth control with a doctor’s note, but this bill would change that so pharmacists can give those prescriptions,” Kitchens says, “I don’t think it’s a conservative or liberal issue. From a financial standpoint, it is conservative because we spend so much on medicare and unplanned pregnancy and this is actually a pro-life bill cause it will decrease abortions.”
Some lawmakers feel it’s a step in the right direction, but some Democrats like Dave Hansen don’t think it covers enough.
“I remember back in the day they were teaching abstinence-only and we had a location in our city that lead our state in the percentage of pregnancy. So more knowledge, more education, and birth control are essential,” Hansen argues.
There are currently 11 states that allow pharmacists to prescribe different types of hormonal birth control. If this bill passes in the Senate it would still have to be signed by Governor Tony Evers.
