Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on Monday offered to work with freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., on making over-the-counter birth control legal.
“Perhaps, in addition to the legislation we are already working on together to ban Members of Congress from becoming lobbyists, we can team up here as well. A simple, clean bill making birth control available over the counter. Interested?” Cruz tweeted in response to Ocasio-Ocasio-Cortez’ post that read, “Psst! Birth control should be over-the-counter, pass it on.”
Ocasio-Cortez responded: “If you’re serious about a clean bill, then I’m down. Let’s make a deal.”
She also called for birth control to be free, something Cruz likely won’t agree to since the way to achieve that would be through single-payer health care.
Women must receive a prescription from a doctor for hormonal contraceptive pills.
Cruz and Ocasio-Cortez last month agreed that Congress should ban former lawmakers from becoming lobbyists and joined forces on a bill that would allow it.
Per the Business Insider, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in 2012 came out in support of making birth control available over-the-counter.
President Donald Trump has endorsed making birth control available over-the-counter as well.