August 04, 2022

Duckworth, Murray Introduce Bill to Help Women with Disabilities Access Reproductive Healthcare

The Reproductive Healthcare Accessibility Act would remove barriers and strengthen access to reproductive care for people with disabilities

 

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), introduced the Reproductive Healthcare Accessibility Act to help ensure women with disabilities—who face discrimination and extra barriers when seeking care—can access reproductive services and get the informed care they need to have control over their own reproductive lives.

“For too long, Americans with disabilities have faced persistent barriers to healthcare services, equipment and providers—and with right-wing efforts underway to go even further to undermine these rights in the wake of the overturning of Roe—many are rightfully worried about having an even harder time accessing the reproductive care they need,” said Duckworth. “Today, I’m proud to join Senator Murray and colleagues in introducing the Reproductive Healthcare Accessibility Act to help ensure those in the disability community—all 61 million of us—are not left behind in getting the care we need, when we need it.”

“Every single American deserves to have control over their own body, life, and future—and that, of course, includes Americans with disabilities. But people with disabilities have long faced discrimination and truly unacceptable roadblocks to getting the reproductive care they need—and Republicans’ nonstop attacks on our rights have made matters so much worse,” said Murray. “Our legislation will help ensure people with disabilities can access reproductive care that meets their needs.”

While women with disabilities have long faced discrimination and barriers to having full access to healthcare, the Dobbs decision has made it much more difficult for women with disabilities to get the informed reproductive healthcare they need. Right now, the roughly one in four adults with a disability are less likely to receive contraception counseling and timely prenatal care, are at greater risks for adverse pregnancy outcomes and all too often lack access to accessible healthcare facilities and face a dearth of providers trained on the unique and diverse needs of people with disabilities.

The Reproductive Healthcare Accessibility Act would eliminate barriers to sexual and reproductive healthcare for people with disabilities by:

  • Providing grant funding to carry out training programs for existing healthcare professionals providing reproductive healthcare for people with disabilities;
  • Providing funding to carry out education and training programs to recruit and train people with disabilities in the healthcare workforce;
  • Providing grant funding to carry out sexual and reproductive healthcare education programs for people with disabilities;
  • Establishing a new technical assistance center to provide recommendations and best practices regarding sexual and reproductive healthcare for people with disabilities; and
  • Directing the Department of Health and Human Services to carry out a study to analyze reproductive healthcare for people with disabilities.

The legislation is endorsed by National Disability Rights Network; National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities; Dr. Jamila Taylor, Director of Health Care Reform and Senior Fellow at The Century Foundation; Kimberly Knackstedt, Ph.D., Co-Director of the Disability Economic Justice Collaborative and Senior Fellow at The Century Foundation; URGE: Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity; Johns Hopkins School of Nursing; Johns Hopkins Disability Health Research Center; Physicians for Reproductive Health; Catholics for Choice; National Partnership for Women and Families; Power to Decide; Docs With Disabilities Initiative; NARAL Pro-Choice America; National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice; Center for American Progress; Planned Parenthood Federation of America; Advocates for Youth; Center for Reproductive Rights and National Council of Jewish Women.

Along with Duckworth and Murray, this legislation is also cosponsored by U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Jack Reed (D-RI), Tina Smith (D-MN), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Cory Booker (D-NJ).

Read a one-pager on the bill here. Read full legislative text here.

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