WATCH: House Passes Bill Protecting Contraceptive Access, Over Republican Objections

The U.S. House of Representatives managed to pass a bill protecting the right to access contraceptives Thursday, despite Republican opposition. The bill will now pass to the divided Senate, where it will need bipartisan support to advance.

The bill, which promises to defend access to contraceptives, as well as protect medical providers who prescribe contraceptives and contraceptive information, was somehow still controversial for Republicans, who argued that it was ‘overreach’ or amounted to government control of contraceptives.

read the chyron while listening to what Van Duyne is saying pic.twitter.com/12ueEelUHy

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 21, 2022

I support contraception.

I’ll be voting NO on the “contraception bill” today.

Contraception likely needs protection FROM congress more than it needs protection BY congress.

If there is any entity you don’t want involved in your contraception choices – it’s the federal gov.

— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) July 21, 2022

Despite the opposition, the bill passed with the support of eight Republicans — including Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney, who are already outliers in the party for their stand against protecting Donald Trump in the wake of the attack on Congress last year.

228-195: House passes the bill codifying the right to contraceptives into law.

Only eight Republicans voted in favor of the legislation: Cheney, Mace, Upton, Kinzinger, Katko, Fitzpatrick, Salazar, Gonzalez (OH). pic.twitter.com/PqN6G2DsNO

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— The Recount (@therecount) July 21, 2022

The final vote was 228 in favor of passing the bill, 195 opposed, and two simply voting ‘present.’

Despite being dismal support for the legislation, it’s still enough to pass on to the Senate.

The bill itself, which is only 14 pages long and can be read in full here, cites the attacks on contraceptive and reproductive freedom, specifically noting that states have at times attempted to define ‘abortion’ so broadly as to outlaw some contraceptive, including emergency contraceptives, and recalling Justice Clarence Thomas’ opinion in the Dobbs case, where he suggested that both contraceptive access and marriage equality are rights that the Supreme Court could reconsider.

It also specifically addresses state laws that allow a provider to deny patients access to contraceptive methods based on the personal belief systems or religious views of the provider.