Alaska Governor Vetoes Expanded Access to Birth Control

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy speaks at a news conference in Anchorage, Alaska, on Aug. 13, 2019. Mark Thiessen/AP Photo

Alaska’s governor vetoed a bill on Sept. 4 that would have expanded access to birth control, on the same day an Alaska judge ruled against an abortion restriction.

Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, vetoed Alaska House Bill 17, which was approved in bipartisan votes in both legislative chambers.

The bill would have mandated that insurers provide coverage for birth control, including consultations to prescribe birth control drugs and procedures to insert birth control devices.

Dunleavy said in a veto letter to Alaska House Speaker Cathy Tilton that “contraceptives are widely available, and compelling insurance companies to provide mandatory coverage for a year is bad policy.”

The Alaska House of Representatives had approved the bill in a 29–11 vote while the Alaska Senate had voted 16–3 to approve it. Both chambers are controlled by Republicans.

State Rep. Ashley Carrick, a Democrat who sponsored the legislation, said the veto is disappointing.

“There is simply no justifiable reason to veto a bill that would ensure every person in Alaska, no matter where they live, has access to essential medication, like birth control,” she said in a statement released by Planned Parenthood.

It wasn’t clear whether legislators would be attempting to override the veto. An override requires a two-thirds majority in each chamber.

Also on Wednesday, Alaska Superior Court Judge Josie Garton ruled in favor of Planned Parenthood in a lawsuit that challenged a law that only allowed doctors licensed by the State Medical Board to perform abortions in the state.

Garton found that the law infringes on patients’ rights to make decisions on abortions and said there were no medical reasons supporting the ban on nurses and other qualified medical professionals performing abortions.

She cited how neither the rate of complications in abortions nor the rate of hospitalizations has changed since the ban took effect.

The ruling permanently blocked the law.

Chris Robison, the state’s top assistant attorney general, told news outlets that the state is reviewing the ruling.

“The statute was enacted to ensure medical safety, and those types of judgments are more appropriately made by the Legislative or Executive branches of government,” he said.