The Senate in session at the Idaho Capitol on April 6, 2021. (Otto Kitsinger for Idaho Capital Sun)
The Idaho Senate on Thursday narrowly passed a bill to require insurance companies to cover six months supplies of contraceptives.
The Idaho Senate approved Senate Bill 1234 on a 19-16 vote. The bill would require insurance companies to provide up to a six-month supply of prescribed contraceptives to people covered. That would make it easier for women who can only access a one- or three-month supply through insurance, bill co-sponsor Sen. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, said on the Senate floor. Wintrow previously said it’s her third time pursuing such a bill.
Idaho Senate Minority Leader Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, listens to action on the Senate floor at the State Capitol building in Boise on Jan. 9, 2023. (Otto Kitsinger for Idaho Capital Sun)
Idaho senators debated whether mandating this coverage from insurers was appropriate. As Wintrow opened debate on her bill, she argued it was.