With the future of guaranteed access to contraception in the United States uncertain, advocates say Brian Fitzpatrick and other members of Congress must act to invigorate a bill that would enshrine the right.
The latest iteration of the Right to Contraception Act, introduced in February 2025 by Democratic members of both the House and Senate, aims to solidify the right to contraception for Americans, including but not limited to oral birth control, emergency birth control, and IUDs.
At the time the legislation was brought forward, co-sponsor Representative Lizzie Fletcher (D-Texas) said it would “protect the right for people to get contraception and for providers to give it in the face of President Trump and Republicans’ relentless attacks on reproductive justice.”
But without a majority support, the bill is currently stalled. Only a few signatures are needed for a discharge petition that would force a vote. Chris Fleming, a spokesperson for Americans for Contraception, said it’s up to Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick and other “moderate” Republicans to push the petition forward.
“It’s non-sensical that they’re not taking this up,” Fleming said. “They’re not voting with their constituents.”
Fleming noted that Fitzpatrick has had a mixed history with past versions of the same bill. In 2022 Fitzpatrick’s “yes” vote helped it pass in the House of Representatives, but it died in the Senate. In 2024, Fitzpatrick declined to support the bill. Fleming said he believes the lawmaker is being influenced by pro-life “heavy monied interests” controlling the Republican party.
“Brian Fitzpatrick reminds me of the cowardly lion. In 2022 he found his courage. Since then, he has lost it,” Fleming said. “He’s had two chances to sign the discharge petition and bring this bill back to the floor. He needs to find his courage again.”
Fitzpatrick’s office did not respond to a request for comment from the Bucks County Beacon.
Democratic congressional candidate Bob Harvie, who will challenge Fitzpatrick to represent Bucks County and District 1, said Fitzpatrick has “repeatedly failed to stand up to his party’s attacks on reproductive freedom.”
“Brian Fitzpatrick is an anti-abortion extremist,” Harvie said. “His record speaks for itself.”
Harive continued:
“After Dobbs, we’ve seen the rights that generations of Americans took for granted come under attack. Congress should be protecting access to contraception, not putting it at risk.”
Harvie said if elected he would “ always fight to defend reproductive freedom, safeguard access to contraception, and keep politicians out of private medical decisions.”
History and context of the Right to Contraception Act
The Right to Contraception Act was first introduced in July 2022 shortly after the Dobbs decision which overturned Roe v. Wade and the federal right to abortion. Within the written decision were 21 mentions of Griswold v. Connecticut, the 1965 case that established the right to contraception.
Within the Dobbs decision Justice Clarance Thomas wrote that “in future cases, we should reconsider all of this court’s substantive due process precedents, including Griswold, Lawrence, and Obergefell.”
Fleming said the wording in the opinion sounded the alarm for reproductive rights advocates.
“Access is already beginning to erode – and poised to get worse. Disinformation about contraception is so rampant online that experts call it ‘an infodemic.’” – Tara Murtha, Women’s Law Project.
“We’ve seen that settled law is no longer settled law,” he said. “Everything is up for interpretation.”
Fleming said the loss of the right to contraception would impact more than just a woman’s ability to plan and prevent pregnancy. He pointed to the usage of contraception for treatment of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, and other “debilitating” issues.
“Contraception is straight up health care,” he said. “If you don’t vote for [the discharge petition], you’ve shown your true colors.”
State-level fight for contraception protection
While the status of the federal Right to Contraception Act hangs in the balance, Pennsylvania state legislators are pushing forward a package of bills that would protect contraception at the state level, as well as IVF and other “emergency reproductive healthcare.”
House Bill 1140, sponsored by Rep. LeAnn Kruger, aims to limit barriers to access to contraception, while Rep. Mary Jo Daley’s House Bill 2605 looks to codify access to both contraception and IVF for Pennsylvania families.
“We have a responsibility to ensure these deeply personal healthcare decisions remain in the hands of individuals and families – not politicians,” Daley said.
Experts said that as the battle for reproductive healthcare continues to wage, state-level protection is more important than ever.
“Access is already beginning to erode – and poised to get worse,” said Tara Murtha, director of impact and engagement for the Women’s Law Project. “Disinformation about contraception is so rampant online that experts call it ‘an infodemic.’ That is why we need state protections now.”
Fleming echoed the point that state-level protection is key.
“Rather than sit on the sidelines and wait for an ideological court [to decide], let’s get these bills passed at the state level,” he said, “so that no one can infringe upon that [right], no matter what the Supreme Court says.”
