October 3, 2016 | No Comments
Forget bumper stickers. Kelly Ayotte’s latest campaign swag is condoms.
The New Hampshire Republican’s campaign is distributing free condoms to publicize her plan to get birth control sold over the counter, and to push back against Democratic arguments that she opposes Planned Parenthood and contraception.
“As part of Kelly’s commitment to making birth control available over the counter, please take a free condom,” said the poster spotted at the University of New Hampshire campaign table over the weekend. “Use Condom Sense!”
The Ayotte campaign said the effort — a rare public embrace of contraception by a Republican senator — will be repeated in the future. The giveaway began last week “to highlight Kelly’s legislation in the Senate to try to make birth control available for routine use over the counter,” said spokeswoman Liz Johnson.
Ayotte is in a hotly contested race against Democrat Maggie Hassan, who has the strong backing of groups that support abortion rights, including Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice America and EMILY’s List, many of which are running ads in support of Hassan or against Ayotte. Planned Parenthood funding and contraception have played a significant role in the race.
Ayotte’s legislation, which mirrors policy crafted by Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) during his 2014 Senate race, when he faced “anti-women” charges, would encourage drugmakers to ask the FDA for approval to sell birth control over the counter. It would also lift restrictions included in Obamacare on using Health Savings and Flexible Spending accounts to purchase over-the-counter drugs.
Opponents of the policy, including Senate Democrats and abortion rights supporters, say Ayotte’s bill would hurt access to contraception because insurers would not be required to cover the cost of over-the-counter birth control.
Hassan supports a bill from Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) that would require insurers to cover contraception if it is approved for over-the-counter use. Her camp argues that Ayotte is trying to paper over a record of opposing Planned Parenthood funding and access to birth control.
“Ayotte doesn’t actually care about making birth control more affordable, she simply views [the condom giveaway] as a tactic to deceive voters,” said Meira Bernstein, a spokeswoman for Hassan.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has backed Murray’s bill and opposed the GOP effort, arguing that the cost of birth control could go up substantially if not covered by insurers. Ayotte says her bill doesn’t state whether insurers would have to cover contraception and that it encourages drugmakers to go through the rigorous and expensive FDA approval process for over-the-counter use. The Democrats’ bill doesn’t provide the fast-track incentives.
In the Senate, Ayotte has voted several times to defund Planned Parenthood, an issue that rose to national prominence last year after a series of sting videos from an anti-abortion activist alleging the organization trafficked in fetal tissue. A board that oversees government contracts in New Hampshire voted to defund Planned Parenthood in the state but later reversed its position.
Johnson defended Ayotte’s votes to defund Planned Parenthood as efforts to redirect the funding to community health centers, which are more prevalent in New Hampshire and provide a broader range of resources.
“What she did is look at what’s the most effective use of taxpayer dollars,” Johnson said.
Ayotte’s tussle with Planned Parenthood goes back to when she was attorney general of New Hampshire. Ayotte went to the Supreme Court in Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood to defend a state law that required parents to be notified before a minor could get an abortion. The law was ultimately repealed.
Planned Parenthood argues that New Hampshire has some of the strongest support for abortion rights in the nation. A recent Public Policy Polling poll showed that 60 percent of independent voters and 44 percent of Republicans view the organization favorably.