Orange County Assemblymember Promotes Access to Birth Control for All Californians

AB 1264 Will Reduce Barriers and Expand Access to Birth Control to Address Unmet Need

SACRAMENTO – To expand access to birth control and enable providers to truly meet patients where they are, Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris is authoring AB 1264 that will allow people to safely access birth control via phone apps. AB 1264 is simply seeking to clarify vague telehealth law related to safely prescribing medication. The bill was approved by the Assembly Business & Professions Committee today on a 16-0 bipartisan vote. 

“Safe and effective family planning has had a profound and positive impact on women’s lives,” said Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris (D-Laguna Beach). “We must do more to decrease barriers to access for birth control, and technology will help address the unmet needs of thousands of patients in California who are seeking birth control.”

AB 1264 authorizes a medical licensee to determine what constitutes an “appropriate prior examination.”  Providers have determined that a video requirement is medically unnecessary and causes an arbitrary barrier to receiving care.

“Yet again, we are making women jump through medically unnecessary hoops to receive basic care,” said Crystal Strait, President/CEO of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California, the sponsor of AB 1264. “As trusted providers, Planned Parenthood understands birth control is a fundamental right that gives people the power to choose if, and when, they become pregnant. With unintended pregnancies still accounting for almost half of pregnancies, it is vital that we continue to expand access to birth control via virtual care and AB 1264 will do just that.”

Planned Parenthood Direct (PPDirect), a phone app allowing access to birth control prescriptions, launched in California in 2016 and saw more than 500 patients on average a month. Nationally, the app is currently available in 23 states and expected to expand to another 10 in 2019.

Due to ambiguity in the law, in 2018, PPDirect in California began requiring synchronous video conference between patient and clinician. Medical experts, like the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the National Institute of Health, have determined synchronous video is not medically necessary nor does it provide any clinical value. This video requirement for birth control is not required in 15 other states that use this app. Furthermore, acquiring hormonal birth control does not require a physical examination, as the legislature has already decided by allowing Pharmacists to prescribe birth control.

With the clarity AB 1264 provides, telehealth applications--like PPDirect-- will enable women to access care at any time based on their schedules and life demands. AB 1264 will provide birth control access to tens of thousands of Californians who are unable to easily access care in a health center. 

AB 1264 will next be heard by the Assembly Appropriations Committee.