[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16319]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               THE EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION EDUCATION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. LOUISE McINTOSH SLAUGHTER

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 18, 2005

  Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, today, I am proud to introduce the 
Emergency Contraception Education Act. By improving education among the 
public and health professionals about emergency contraception (EC), my 
bill will help protect women's reproductive health, reduce unwanted 
pregnancies, and prevent abortions.
  Each year in the US., there are 3 million women who must contend with 
the reality of an unintended pregnancy. Half of these end in abortion. 
Experts estimate that widespread use of EC could prevent as many as 50% 
of these unintended pregnancies, which would dramatically reduce the 
number of abortions in this country. The Alan Guttmacher Institute has 
documented its effectiveness--estimating that increased use of EC 
accounted for up to 43 percent of the total decline in abortion rates 
between 1994 and 2000.
  Emergency contraception is a concentrated form of the daily birth 
control pills taken by nearly 12 million women in the U.S. It does not 
cause abortion, but instead stops the release of an egg from the ovary. 
EC is a safe and effective means of preventing pregnancy--it has low-
toxicity and no potential for overdose or addiction; it is not harmful 
to an existing pregnancy; and because there are no important drug 
interactions, there is no need for medical screening allowing for self-
identification of the need. Furthermore, EC will not harm an 
established pregnancy. If taken within 72 hours after unprotected sex 
or contraceptive failure, EC can reduce the risk of pregnancy by as 
much as 89 percent. But because of the narrow window of effectiveness, 
timely access to EC is critical.
  In light of its safety and efficacy, the American Medical Association 
and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists have 
supported more widespread availability of EC. Yet, many patients and 
health care providers remain uniformed about this important 
contraception option. Only 1 in 10 women of reproductive age in the US. 
are aware of EC. In 2003, the Kaiser Foundation conducted a survey to 
examine teens and adults' knowledge and opinions of EC in California. 
What they found was very disconcerting--nearly 40 percent did not know 
that EC was available in the U.S., and half of adult women who had 
heard of EC, mistakenly thought that it was the ``abortion pill,'' also 
known as RU-486. Only 7 percent of adults who have heard of EC learned 
about it from their health care professional. Even women who had a 
gynecologic exam in the last year were no more likely to have learned 
about EC from their doctor.
  Unfortunately, lack of knowledge and the failure to provide patients 
with information on EC is a familiar trend throughout this country. 
Only one in five ob/gyns in the U.S. routinely discuss emergency 
contraception with their patients. Less than 18 percent of hospitals 
provide emergency contraception at a woman's request without 
restrictions. And, tragically nearly 50 percent of hospitals do not 
provide EC to a woman who has been sexually assaulted, even though it 
is often the only contraceptive option for the 300,000 women who are 
raped each year.
  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. My bill will move us much closer toward achieving 
this goal. The Emergency Contraception Education Act will initiate a 
large-scale education campaign to better inform women and health care 
providers about emergency contraception. Specifically, this bill will 
direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and 
disseminate information on EC to health care providers, including 
recommendations on the use of EC in appropriate cases, and how to 
obtain copies of information developed by HHS for distribution to 
patients. The Secretary will also be required to develop and 
disseminate information on EC to the American public.
  EC could help drastically reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies 
and abortions in the United States. However, barriers to information 
and access hinder this preventative contraceptive method from reaching 
its full potential. We can and we must do more to protect women's 
reproductive health by increasing knowledge of emergency contraception 
and expanding access to this critical preventative solution.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge Members to cosponsor my bill today.

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