Udall Urges Passage of His Bill to Protect Women's Access to Critical Health Services, Keep Corporate Interference Out of Private Health Decisions

Press Release

Mark Udall urged his colleagues today to swiftly pass his common-sense bill to confront the U.S. Supreme Court's recent Hobby Lobby decision and keep corporate interference out of women's private health decisions. The Protect Women's Health from Corporate Interference Act -- commonly called the "Not My Boss's Business" Act -- aims to protect women from employers who want to deny their employees critical health benefits.

The bill is scheduled for a vote on the U.S. Senate floor tomorrow.

"Just over two short weeks ago, before the Hobby Lobby decision, workers knew exactly what health services they had access to under their health plans. They didn't need to be labor lawyers to figure out what benefits they would receive, which benefits they might be at risk of losing, or how much more they would have to pay out of pocket for prescription drugs or other critical health treatments. However, with the Hobby Lobby case, that's all changed," Udall said. "Supporters of the Hobby Lobby decision want women to believe that this isn't a big deal, but let me be clear -- this has the potential to change health coverage for millions of women. And I'm not -- along with millions of Americans -- going to stand for this kind of discrimination."

"And not only does this case wedge bosses into private health care decisions, it unfairly burdens hardworking women, ignoring the fact that contraception can be crucial to women and families' economic success. The ability to decide when, how and with whom to have a family is critical to the health and economic security of women and their families," he added.

Udall has led the effort in the Senate to protect Colorado women's access to essential health services. He decried the U.S. Supreme Court's decision last week to allow some employers to refuse to cover contraception as part of employees' health insurance policies and vowed to introduce legislation to restore Americans' freedom to make their own health care decisions without corporate intrusion. A longtime champion for Colorado women's access to affordable health care, Udall has fought to expand access to preventive health care services for women and has championed women's rights to make their own health care decisions.

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