State-level checklist for OTC birth control coverage

Many US states have laid the groundwork for broadening over-the-counter (OTC) birth control coverage and an increasing number of private and public insurers provide OTC coverage of birth control without a prescription. Further, under the current statutes of the Affordable Care Act, most private health plans are required to cover all FDA-approved methods of contraception without cost-sharing.

However, coverage is only meaningful if it works in the real world. It is important to ensure that these policies can be implemented in a way that supports equitable access and meeting consumers where they are to overcome the systemic and structural barriers that have made birth control unobtainable for many communities of people. This checklist is a set of recommendations that seeks to assist national and state partners in successfully implementing and operationalizing insurance coverage of OTC birth control.