[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 68 (Thursday, April 26, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S5218]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. CLINTON (for herself, Mr. Menendez, Mrs. Boxer, Ms. 
        Cantwell, Mr. Kerry, Mrs. Murray, and Mr. Lautenberg):
  S. 1240. A bill to provide for the provision by hospitals receiving 
Federal funds through the Medicare program or Medicaid program of 
emergency contraceptives to women who are survivors of sexual assault; 
to the Committee on Finance.
  Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, in recognition of National Crime 
Victim's Week, I am proud to reintroduce the ``Compassionate Assistance 
for Rape Emergencies Act,'' a bill that will help rape and incest 
survivors across the country get the medical care they need and 
deserve.
  Women deserve access to emergency contraception. For millions of 
women, it represents peace of mind. For survivors of rape and incest, 
it allows them to avoid the additional trauma of facing an unintended 
pregnancy. This bill makes emergency contraception available for 
survivors of rape and incest at any hospital receiving public funds.
  Every 2 minutes a woman is sexually assaulted in the U.S. and each 
year, 25 to 32,000 women become pregnant as a result of rape or incest. 
According to a study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics 
and Gynecology, 50 percent of those pregnancies end in abortion.
  By providing access to emergency contraception, up to 95 percent of 
those unintended pregnancies could be prevented if emergency 
contraception is administered within the first 24 to 72 hours.
  I am proud that for 4 years, this has already been law in New York 
State. Survivors of rape and incest receive information and access to 
emergency contraception at every hospital in the State. In New York 
City, women are benefiting from Mayor Bloomberg's significant 
initiative to expand access to emergency contraception and family 
planning services and improve maternal and infant outcomes. I applaud 
this focus on increasing awareness about emergency contraception--to 
all women--so that we can work together at decreasing the rate of 
unintended pregnancy in this country.
  Last year, the FDA made emergency contraception available over the 
counter for women 18 years of age and older. Despite the ideologically 
driven agenda against Plan B, research shows that emergency 
contraception is safe and effective for preventing pregnancy. More than 
70 major medical organizations, including the American Academy of 
Pediatrics, recommended that Plan B be made available over the counter. 
This bill will make sure hospitals provide women in crisis with the 
necessary information to evaluate this option for themselves. In 
addition, the bill ensures that patients can receive post-exposure 
treatment for sexually transmitted infections for which the deferral of 
treatment either would significantly reduce treatment efficacy or would 
pose substantial risk to the individual's health.
  Public health employees at the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention include access to emergency contraception as a protocol and 
viable option for these victims. The U.S. Department of Justice 
guidelines, however, make no reference to emergency contraception as a 
potential option for rape and incest victims. This is why I'm 
introducing this legislation today.
  It is my sincere hope that my colleagues join me in the fight to 
better protect and serve our Nation's rape and incest survivors.
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