N.J. may make contraception easier for women to get

The state Senate voted Thursday to let women obtain their prescribed birth control six months at a time. (AMANDA BROWN | THE STAR-LEDGER)

Women who rely on prescribed birth control would be able to obtain a six-month supply at once -- at least twice as long as most insurance companies allow, under a bill the state Senate approved Thursday in Trenton.

Having already passed the Assembly during the summer, the bill now goes to Gov. Chris Christie's desk.

He's likely to sign it into law because he vetoed an earlier version that would have permitted a 12-month supply of pills or skin patches. The Legislature agreed to his terms: a six-month compromise.

"The purpose of this bill is to increase access to birth control and by providing this six-month supply we will ensure that women can plan longer-term. Women today are often busy with work and managing child care, which makes picking up a monthly prescription impractical," Sen. Shirley Turner D-Mercer, the bill's sponsor.

"Women should have timely access to contraception in order to protect their health, plan their families and their future and this is a bill that will help with that effort."

The law would cut down on unplanned or unintended pregnancies, which accounted for more than one-third of all pregnancies in the nation and more than one half in New Jersey in 2010,  according to the reproductive health research organization the Guttmacher Institute.

The bill, S659, if signed into law, applies only to insurance companies regulated by the state, such as Horizon Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Jersey and the benefit plans for state employees and school employees. State law cannot control federally-regulated plans, such as benefits provided by a self-insured company.

Susan K. Livio may be reached at slivio@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @SusanKLivio. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

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