05/03/2024 01:30 PM Senate LABOR & COMMERCE

        HB 17-CONTRACEPTIVES COVERAGE:INSURE;MED ASSIST                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:44:12 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR  BJORKMAN   reconvened  the   meeting  and   announced  the                                                               
consideration of  HB 17  "An Act  relating to  insurance coverage                                                               
for  contraceptives and  related  services;  relating to  medical                                                               
assistance coverage for contraceptives  and related services; and                                                               
providing for an effective date."                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
           [Before the committee is SCS HB 17(HSS).]                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
1:44:49 PM                                                                                                                    
REPRESENTATIVE   ASHLEY  CARRICK,   District  35,   Alaska  State                                                               
Legislature,  Juneau, Alaska,  sponsor of  HB 17,  said it  would                                                               
align  Alaska   statutes  with  federal   contraceptive  coverage                                                               
mandates  and  provide for  up  to  a 12-month  prescription  for                                                               
contraception   instead   of   the   current   one-to-three-month                                                               
prescription.  She  said HB  17  does  not include  controversial                                                               
items  such  as  emergency contraception  or  abortifacients  nor                                                               
would  it  change anything  about  the  relationship between  the                                                               
provider and  the patient, in  terms of  what to prescribe  for a                                                               
particular patient. She  said HB 17 would simply  change what the                                                               
patient can have covered by insurance.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
1:46:08 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR BJORKMAN asked  if HB 17 would legalize drugs  that are not                                                               
currently legal and available to people.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
1:46:14 PM                                                                                                                    
REPRESENTATIVE CARRICK answered that it would not.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
1:46:19 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR BJORKMAN opened public testimony on HB 17.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
1:46:44 PM                                                                                                                    
KC  CASORT, representing  self, Fairbanks,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
support of HB 17. She  expressed appreciation for the sponsor for                                                               
prioritizing  the bill  and advancing  it through  the House  and                                                               
Senate. She said  HB 17 would provide consistent  access to birth                                                               
control  for Alaskans  who rely  on  it for  family planning  and                                                               
managing  conditions  like  endometriosis  and  polycystic  ovary                                                               
syndrome (PCOS),  which affects one  in ten women in  Alaska. She                                                               
said HB  17 would allow  patients to pick  up a year's  supply of                                                               
birth control  if their  doctor decides  that's what's  best. She                                                               
described  the  inconvenience of  having  to  visit the  pharmacy                                                               
within a narrow refill window,  often leading to missed doses and                                                               
emphasized  the  challenges  faced  by  people  without  reliable                                                               
transportation or flexible jobs  in accessing medication monthly.                                                               
She shared  that her birth  control worked as  intended, allowing                                                               
her  to focus  on her  education  and career.  She concluded  her                                                               
testimony by  expressing her hope  that the bill would  be passed                                                               
to improve access to birth control for many Alaskans.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:49:13 PM                                                                                                                    
DEZARAE  ARROWSUN,  Board  Member, Juneau  Pro-Choice  Coalition,                                                               
Juneau, Alaska,  testified in support of  HB 17. She said  it was                                                               
very  important  that  women  be able  to  maintain  their  birth                                                               
control regularly. She  said she had an abortion  because she ran                                                               
out of  birth control  and was  unable to get  it in  time before                                                               
becoming pregnant. She  said it was an awful decision  to have to                                                               
make, and that  she didn't want other women to  have to make that                                                               
decision if they  are unable to maintain  their prescription. She                                                               
urged support for HB 17.                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
1:50:15 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR BJORKMAN closed public testimony on HB 17.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
1:50:36 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR BJORKMAN solicited the will of the committee.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
1:50:40 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR  GRAY-JACKSON  moved to  report  SCS  CSHB 17(HSS),  work                                                               
order    33-LS0222\R,    from     committee    with    individual                                                               
recommendations and  attached fiscal  note(s). She  further moved                                                               
to grant Legislative  Legal the authority to  make corrections to                                                               
any typographic errors in the bill.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
1:51:00 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR  BJORKMAN  found no  objection  and  SCS CSHB  17(HSS)  was                                                               
reported from the Senate Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.