[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 96 (Friday, July 17, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1346]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


        TREASURY AND GENERAL GOVERNMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1999

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                               speech of

                        HON. FORTNEY PETE STARK

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 16, 1998

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4104) making 
     appropriations for the Treasury Department, the United States 
     Postal Service, the Executive Office of the President, and 
     certain Independent Agencies, for the fiscal year ending 
     September 30, 1999 and for other purposes:


  Mr. STARK. Mr. Chairman, I rise to support the Lowey amendment to the 
FY 99 Treasury-Postal Appropriations bill which would require that 
Federal Employees Health Benefits plans cover prescription 
contraception just as they cover other prescriptions.
  The federal program should be a model for private plans and, as an 
employer, the federal government should provide this basic health 
benefit for women and their families insured through FEHB plans.
  However, most FEHB plans limit coverage of contraception, and in some 
cases cover only one method of prescription contraception, despite the 
fact that participating plans overwhelmingly cover prescription drugs 
and clearly recognize them as a key health benefits.
  Even worse, 10% of plans have no coverage of contraceptives--that is, 
they fail to cover any of the top five leading reversible contraceptive 
methods (oral contraceptives, diaphragm, IUD, Depo-Provera, and 
Norplant.
  The inadequacy of contraceptive coverage through FEHB plans is clear. 
A woman covered by the an FEHB plan may be forced to choose a 
contraceptive method that is not best suited for her medical needs. 
While there is near universal coverage of sterilization by FEHB plans 
and reasonable good coverage of oral contraceptives, the percentage of 
plans covering other specific reversible methods varies dramatically. A 
total of 88% of plans cover oral contraception, yet only 28% cover the 
IUD. Thus, plans often do not afford a woman the option of non-hormonal 
contraception or the choice of the birth control method that may be 
best suited for her medical circumstances.
  Some of our colleagues intend to make a spectacle of this issue on 
the floor. Meanwhile, the health and safety of women seeking 
contraceptive coverage through their FEHBP is endangered at the hands 
of the conservative majority.
  We must not allow this last-minute pandering to the right wing at the 
expense of women enrolled in FEHB plans, nor must we allow the 
conservative majority to dictate the birth control methods used by 
federal employees and their families.

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