- February 24, 2017
Katie McKellar, Deseret News/KSL Contributing: Ryan Morgan
Utah Legislature 2017
SALT LAKE CITY — Rep. Mia Love, R-Utah, updated lawmakers Thursday on her current priorities in Congress, including a bill she
acknowledged has been “controversial.”
As part of her efforts to contribute to the replacement of the Affordable Care Act, Love said she is pushing forward a bill that would allow contraceptives to be sold over the counter without a prescription.
“If we are going to be pro-life, we need to be able to give people as much access to birth control as possible,” Love said.
By allowing birth control to be sold over the counter, its price would be reduced from $30 a month to $3 a month because it would “bypass” pharmacy fees, she said.
“This is my way of empowering American women and making sure they are in charge of their decision-making,” Love said.
That was one highlight of Love’s annual address to the Utah Legislature, where she told lawmakers Congress is making headway on important issues, despite apprehension of the climate of today’s federal government.
“I recognize that some people are nervous about the environment in Washington,” Love said, “but I want you to know there’s a lot of positive work going on.”
The 4th District representative listed her efforts to help tackle a variety of issues, including replacement of the Affordable Care Act, immigration, restoring the “balance of power” in Congress, human trafficking and terrorism.
When Rep. Jim Dunnigan, R-Taylorsville, asked about the latest progress on replacing the Affordable Care Act, Love said everyone in Congress is working on addressing different aspects, just like how she’s focused on access to birth control.
“Let me make something very clear. It is incredibly important to know that when the repeal was done, the intention and the effort and the commitment is to make sure we’re not leaving people uninsured,” she said. “We’ve got to make sure we do everything we can to bring more free market, more opportunities to health care, and there’s a lot of work being done.”
Contributing: Ryan Morgan
Katie McKellar Katie McKellar covers local politics and community issues on city, county and state levels for Deseret News/KSL.
@KatieMcKellar1
kmckellar@deseretnews.com
