MADISON, Wis. — Sixty-one years after Griswold v. Connecticut established a constitutional right to contraception and helped lay the foundation for modern privacy rights, Americans for Contraception is urging Congress to protect that right before it is taken away.

The organization is calling on members of the U.S. House to sign a discharge petition that would allow a vote on the “Right to Contraception Act,” legislation designed to protect both the right to contraception and the privacy rights recognized in Griswold.

In Wisconsin, Democratic Reps. Mark Pocan and Gwen Moore have signed the discharge petition to allow a vote on the “Right to Contraception Act.” GOP Reps. Bryan Steil, Derrick Van Orden, Scott Fitzgerald, Glenn Grothman, Tom Tiffany, and Tony Wied have refused to stand up to their party’s leadership and allow a simple up-or-down vote.

Chris Fleming, spokesperson for Americans for Contraception, said: “We applaud Reps. Mark Pocan and Gwen Moore for their leadership in advancing this discharge petition and fighting to ensure the House has an opportunity to vote on protections for the right to contraception. House members who say they support contraception rights should sign the petition and allow a vote on the ‘Right to Contraception Act.’ Wisconsinites deserve to know where their elected representatives stand.”

Dr. Dara Kass, MD, Emergency Medicine Physician and Board Member, Americans for Contraception, said: “For 61 years, Americans have relied on the constitutional right to contraception recognized in Griswold v. Connecticut and the broader right to privacy that decision helped establish. But after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and Justice Thomas called on the Court to ‘reconsider’ precedents like Griswold, those protections can no longer be taken for granted. Congress must pass the ‘Right to Contraception Act’ and provide lasting federal protections for the right to contraception, personal privacy, and the freedom to make decisions about our own bodies, families, and futures.”

This week, lawmakers, healthcare providers, and advocates across [STATE] are marking the 61st anniversary of Griswold v. Connecticut, highlighting ongoing threats to contraception rights and personal privacy, and calling for action to protect those rights and freedoms.

If enacted, the “Right to Contraception Act” would: 

  • Create a federal right for people to obtain contraceptives; 
  • Establish a right for health care providers to provide contraceptives and information related to contraception; 
  • Allow the Department of Justice, as well as providers and individuals harmed by restrictions on contraception access made unlawful under the legislation, to go to court to enforce these rights; and 
  • Protect access to a range of contraceptive methods, devices, and medications used to prevent pregnancy, including but not limited to oral contraceptives, emergency contraceptives, and intrauterine devices (IUDs).