[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 896 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                  S. 896

   To establish a public education and awareness program relating to 
                        emergency contraception.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 11, 2003

 Mrs. Murray  (for herself and Ms. Cantwell) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To establish a public education and awareness program relating to 
                        emergency contraception.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Emergency Contraception Education 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds as follows:
            (1) Each year, 3,000,000 pregnancies, or one half of all 
        pregnancies, in the United States are unintended, and half of 
        all of these unintended pregnancies end in abortion.
            (2) The Food and Drug Administration has declared emergency 
        contraception to be safe and effective in preventing unintended 
        pregnancy.
            (3) The most commonly used forms of emergency contraception 
        are regimens of ordinary birth control pills. Taken within 72 
        hours of unprotected intercourse or contraceptive failure, 
        emergency contraception can reduce the risk of pregnancy by as 
        much as 89 percent. Recent medical evidence confirms that 
        emergency contraception can be effective up to five days after 
        unprotected intercourse or contraception failure.
            (4) Emergency contraception, also known as post-coital 
        contraception, is a responsible means of preventing pregnancy 
        that works like other hormonal contraception to delay 
        ovulation, prevent fertilization or prevent implantation.
            (5) Emergency contraception does not cause abortion and 
        will not affect an established pregnancy.
            (6) It is estimated that the use of emergency contraception 
        could cut the number of unintended pregnancies in half, thereby 
        reducing the need for abortion.
            (7) New data from the Alan Guttmacher Institute estimates 
        that 51,000 abortions were prevented by use of emergency 
        contraception in 2000 and that increased use of emergency 
        contraception accounted for up to 43 percent of the total 
        decline in abortion rates between 1994 and 2000.
            (8) Emergency contraceptive use is the United States 
        remains low, and 9 in 10 women of reproductive age remain 
        unaware of the method.
            (9) Although the American College of Obstetricians and 
        Gynecologists recommends that doctors routinely offer women of 
        reproductive age a prescription for emergency contraceptive 
        pills during their annual visit, only 1 in 5 ob/gyns routinely 
        discuss emergency contraception with their patients, suggesting 
        the need for greater provider and patient education.
            (10) In light of their safety and efficacy, both the 
        American Medical Association and the American College of 
        Obstetricians and Gynecologists have endorsed more widespread 
        availability of emergency contraceptive pills, and have 
        recommended that dedicated emergency contraceptive products be 
        available without a prescription.
            (11) Healthy People 2010, published by the Office of the 
        Surgeon General, establishes a 10-year national public health 
        goal of increasing the proportion of health care providers who 
        provide emergency contraception to their patients.
            (12) Public awareness campaigns targeting women and health 
        care providers will help remove many of the barriers to 
        emergency contraception and will help bring this important 
        means of pregnancy prevention to American women.

SEC. 3. EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION EDUCATION AND INFORMATION PROGRAMS.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Emergency contraception.--The term ``emergency 
        contraception'' means a drug or device (as the terms are 
        defined in section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic 
        Act (21 U.S.C. 321)) or a drug regimen that is--
                    (A) used after sexual relations; and
                    (B) prevents pregnancy, by preventing ovulation, 
                fertilization of an egg, or implantation of an egg in a 
                uterus.
            (2) Health care provider.--The term ``health care 
        provider'' means an individual who is licensed or certified 
        under State law to provide health care services and who is 
        operating within the scope of such license.
            (3) Institution of higher education.--The term 
        ``institution of higher education'' has the same meaning given 
        such term in section 1201(a) of the Higher Education Act of 
        1965 (20 U.S.C. 1141(a)).
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Health and Human Services.
    (b) Emergency Contraception Public Education Program.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the Director 
        of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall 
        develop and disseminate to the public information on emergency 
        contraception.
            (2) Dissemination.--The Secretary may disseminate 
        information under paragraph (1) directly or through 
        arrangements with nonprofit organizations, consumer groups, 
        institutions of higher education, Federal, State, or local 
        agencies, clinics and the media.
            (3) Information.--The information disseminated under 
        paragraph (1) shall include, at a minimum, a description of 
        emergency contraception, and an explanation of the use, safety, 
        efficacy, and availability of such contraception.
    (c) Emergency Contraception Information Program for Health Care 
Providers.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the 
        Administrator of the Health Resources and Services 
        Administration and in consultation with major medical and 
        public health organizations, shall develop and disseminate to 
        health care providers information on emergency contraception.
            (2) Information.--The information disseminated under 
        paragraph (1) shall include, at a minimum--
                    (A) information describing the use, safety, 
                efficacy and availability of emergency contraception;
                    (B) a recommendation regarding the use of such 
                contraception in appropriate cases; and
                    (C) information explaining how to obtain copies of 
                the information developed under subsection (b), for 
                distribution to the patients of the providers.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section, $10,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2004 through 2008.
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