Mass. governor signs law protecting birth control

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) signed a law Monday protecting free birth control in the state, even as the Trump administration takes aim at the ObamaCare requirement that insurers cover birth control without a co-pay.

“This legislation will ensure no woman in Massachusetts, irrespective of what goes on in Washington, will worry about whether her health care services and rights will be affected here in the commonwealth,” Baker said at the bill’s signing ceremony Monday afternoon, according to MassLive.

Even if Republicans are able to muster enough support to repeal ObamaCare next year, the law is aimed at ensuring birth control doesn’t cost residents of the state any money.

In October, the Trump administration rolled back the ObamaCare requirement that employers’ health insurance plans include birth control coverage.

For-profit and nonprofit employers and insurers can decide to stop following the mandate on moral and religious grounds under last month’s rule from the administration. The Massachusetts legislation has a religious exemption for churches, according to MassLive.

The new Massachusetts law requires health insurers cover at least one kind of every type of birth control approved by the Food and Drug Administration, including over-the-counter emergency contraception.