Republicans support birth control? Georgia GOP backs bill, expands access to contraceptives

Georgia House Republicans announced Wednesday a batch of bills dedicated to putting “Georgia Families First.” 

Among them was a measure to increase access to contraceptives across the state. House Bill 1138 would allow pharmacists to prescribe birth control and also allows patients to receive more than one month of birth control pills at a time.

State Rep. Beth Camp, R-Concord, said 36 other states already have similar measures in place.

“In my family, something that’s really important is opportunities, and when people have access to family planning such as contraception, they’re able to bring opportunities to light because they’re able to make plans for their future,” she said.

Camp highlighted the importance of being able to receive more than a month of birth control at a time.

“For some individuals who don’t have good transportation or live in more rural areas, who travel, who are in college, or for a litany of reasons, it allows them access for up to 12 months at a time,” she said.

Camp said she was honored to bring the bill to the house because she has a 25-year-old daughter, and she hopes to get the governor’s signature soon.

Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns said the bill would significantly increase access to family planning resources for women in Georgia.

“As I often say, life is about timing, and for many families that means having the tools and resources they need to responsibly plan for the future and start their families when the time is right,” he said.

The group also put forward House Bill 1118, which extends paid maternity leave for state employee birth mothers to 9 weeks, and plans to allocate $8.9 million to expand the Department of Public Health’s Home Visiting Nurse Program.