,,ii #aacth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #bfje ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,july #ae1 #bjad ,ms4 ,ayotte 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,mc,connell1 ,mrs4 ,fischer1 ,mr4 ,burr1 ,mr4 ,chambliss1 ,mr4 ,cornyn1 ,mr4 ,graham1 ,mr4 ,grassley1 ,mr4 ,hatch1 ,mr4 ,isakson1 ,mr4 ,mc,cain1 ,mr4 ,portman1 ,mr4 ,risch1 ,mr4 ,thune1 ,mr4 ,wicker1 and ,mr4 ,johanns7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,finance ,a ,,bill ,to preserve religious freedom and a woman's access to contraception4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,preserving ,religious ,freedom and a ,woman's ,access to ,contraception ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,instead of restricting ,americans' religious freedoms1 ,congress should preserve a woman's ability to make contraceptive decisions for herself4 7#b7 ,the freedom of religion is the first freedom listed in the ,first ,amendment to the ,constitution of the ,united ,states1 and ,congress has a strong interest in protecting the free exercise of religion for ,americans of all faiths4 7#c7 ,the ,religious ,freedom ,restoration ,act of #aiic was signed by ,president ,clinton on ,november #af1 #aiic1 after passing the ,house of ,representatives unanimously and passing the ,senate with the votes of #ig ,senators1 including #af currently serving ,senators and the ,vice ,president4 7#d7 ,title ,,vii of the ,civil ,rights ,act of #aifd provides important protections against discrimination on the basis of race1 color1 religion1 sex1 or national origin4 7#e7 ,the ,health ,insurance ,portability and ,accountability ,act and amendments made by that ,act establish comprehensive protections to ensure that any medications used by or prescribed for an individual are not disclosed to an employer in its capacity as an employer4 7#f7 ,the ,food and ,drug ,administration has found a number of contraceptives to be proven safe and effective at preventing pregnancies as well as in managing certain medical conditions4 7#g7 ,there are #e programs1 including the ,medicaid program1 carried out by the ,department of ,health and ,human ,services that provide access to contraception for low-income women4 7#h7 ,federal and ,state government spending for contraceptive services totaled #b1cgj1jjj1jjj in fiscal year #bjaj and the ,medicaid program financed #ge percent of government spending for family planning4 7#i7 ,more than #ai1jjj1jjj women were eligible for government-supported contraceptive services in #bjaj4 7#aj7 ,even before ,obamacare mandated that employers fully subsidize employees' contraception1 women had wide access to ,food and ,drug ,administration-approved contraception and such contraception was covered by insurance at over #he percent of large businesses4 7#aa7 ,now1 ,obamacare's various requirements cause an unprecedented intrusion of government mandates into ,americans' personal health care decisions1 including unprecedented ,federal mandates that employers become involved in those decisions1 and the individual mandate1 which requires individuals to purchase health insurance or pay a penalty4 7#ab7 ,obamacare has created an enormous disruption in the personal health insurance options of millions of ,americans whose health insurance plans were cancelled or whose preferred doctors were not included in their new health insurance plan networks4 7#ac7 ,the ,congressional ,budget ,office estimates that ,obamacare could reduce employment by the equivalent of #b1jjj1jjj jobs over the next #aj years4 7#ad7 ,one of ,obamacare's mandates places #b1fjj1jjj ,americans1 nearly two-thirds of them women1 at risk of having their hours and wages reduced1 according to the ,hoover ,institution4 7#ae7 ,obamacare's cuts to the ,medicare ,advantage program and other regulatory actions could reduce the average benefit for women who rely on the program by #a1ech per year1 or #ac percent4 7#af7 ,obamacare's payroll tax increase creates an inequitable tax penalty for married working women4 7#ag7 ,obamacare places limitations on health savings accounts1 flexible spending accounts1 and other consumer-directed health savings vehicles1 which help approximately #ag1djj1jjj ,americans to save for their own health expenses1 including contraceptives4 7#ah7 ,the current ,administration has granted discretionary compliance waivers from ,obamacare to a variety of for-profit businesses1 unions1 and other organizations4 7#ai7 ,to date1 the ,department of ,health and ,human ,services has granted more than #a1jjj individual waiver requests for employers and insurers1 excusing the employers and insurers from compliance with various aspects of the law4 #c4 ,sense of the ,senate ,it is the sense of the ,senate that the ,food and ,drug ,administration should study whether contraceptives that are available with a prescription1 on the date of enactment of this ,act1 would be safe and effective for adults if available without a prescription4 #d4 ,employee protection ,notwithstanding any other provision of law1 an employer who is engaged in interstate commerce may not prohibit an employee from purchasing1 pursuant to ,state prescribing and dispensing laws1 a drug or medical device1 including a contraceptive1 that is regulated by the ,food and ,drug ,administration4 #e4 ,empowering employees to make health choices 7a7 ,no limitations based on whether a drug is prescribed ,section #ijjc of the ,patient ,protection and ,affordable ,care ,act 7,public ,law #aaa-adh71 and the amendments made by such section1 are repealed1 and the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf shall be applied as if such section1 and amendments1 had never been enacted4 7b7 ,no limitations on health ,f,s,as ,sections #ijje and #ajijb of the ,patient ,protection and ,affordable ,care ,act 7,public ,law #aaa-adh7 and section #adjc of the ,health ,care and ,education ,reconciliation ,act of #bjaj 7,public ,law #aaa-aeb71 and the amendments made by such sections1 are repealed1 and the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf shall be applied as if such section1 and amendments1 had never been enacted4