--- title: Report Finds Gaps in Birth Control Coverage Under Obamacare description: A new study from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds not all birth control is covered without costs or copay canonical: https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-16T19:24:05.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:59:23.171Z article:section: Health og:title: Not All Birth Control Covered by Insurance Companies Under Obamacare og:description: A report found that some IUDs and emergency contraceptives are not covered og:url: https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt87c013cbe385208c/6987eb95cd6848aa9e09d914/birth-control.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5200 og:image:height: 2925 og:image:alt: Woman taking birth controll pill og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Not All Birth Control Covered by Insurance Companies Under Obamacare twitter:description: A report found that some IUDs and emergency contraceptives are not covered twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt87c013cbe385208c/6987eb95cd6848aa9e09d914/birth-control.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Not All Birth Control Covered by Insurance Companies Under Obamacare > Sponsored content. 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Health Matters is TIME's daily health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free daily newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ## Video: The Island That Holds the Secret to Long Life [Watch (HLS stream): The Island That Holds the Secret to Long Life](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/orlnwhNb.m3u8) (7:08)  _Published 2014-05-23. Here's how the people of Ikaria, Greece reach old age_ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Apr 16, 2015 7:24 PM UTC  A woman holding a package of a birth controll pill in her hands. Photo by: Frank May/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images A woman holding a package of a birth controll pill in her hands. Photo by: Frank May/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images Frank May—picture-alliance/dpa/AP by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Apr 16, 2015 7:24 PM UTC Most health insurance companies are offering the free birth control required under the Affordable Care Act, but gaps still remain, according to a new [report](http://kff.org/womens-health-policy/press-release/new-report-analyzes-health-insurance-coverage-of-contraceptives/). The [Kaiser Family Foundation](http://kff.org/womens-health-policy/press-release/new-report-analyzes-health-insurance-coverage-of-contraceptives/) examined 20 health insurance providers in five states and found women are still paying some contraceptives, including vaginal rings, patches and implants. The free birth control requirement is both a key and controversial piece of President Obama’s signature health law, seen as one of the many ways the law helps lower health costs for women. The report found that while many insurance carriers in California, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey and Texas are covering contraceptives cost-free, some do not fully cover Depo-Provera shots, the OrthoEvra patch, certain types of intrauterine devices or IUDs, and emergency contraception. Without coverage, the contraceptives can be expensive. An [IUD](http://time.com/the-best-form-of-birth-control-is-the-one-no-one-is-using/), for example, costs up to $1,000—which means that without insurance coverage, one of the most effective forms of birth control is unavailable to some of the women who want to use it. “We encourage the administration to provide guidance and clarity to insurance companies to ensure all women can access the birth control methods that work for them without cost barriers, as the law intended,” Cecile Richards, the president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said in a statement. The Kaiser report notes that insurance carriers are permitted to limit the forms of birth control they cover under Obamacare, but the companies should still offer leeway to consumers who have a medical need for certain devices, the report found. The report also found that despite the widespread attention to the effect the contraceptive mandate would have on religious institutions that oppose birth control, few groups have applied for a religious exception to the law. **Read more**: [_Why You’re Still Paying for Birth Control Even Though It’s ‘Free’ Now_ ](http://time.com/money/3672529/free-birth-control-aca-obamacare-insurers-must-cover/) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/"},"headline":"Not All Birth Control Covered by Insurance Companies Under Obamacare","datePublished":"2015-04-16T19:24:05.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:59:23.171Z","description":"A new study from the Kaiser Family Foundation finds not all birth control is covered without costs or copays, including some IUDs and emergency contraceptives","url":"https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/","keywords":["Public Health","Affordable Care Act","Contraceptives","Birth Control"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt87c013cbe385208c/6987eb95cd6848aa9e09d914/birth-control.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Maya Rhodan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt87c013cbe385208c/6987eb95cd6848aa9e09d914/birth-control.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Woman taking birth controll pill","caption":"Woman taking birth controll pill","creditText":"Frank May—picture-alliance/dpa/AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/public-health/","name":"Public Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/","name":"Not All Birth Control Covered by Insurance Companies Under Obamacare"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Island That Holds the Secret to Long Life","description":"Here's how the people of Ikaria, Greece reach old age","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/orlnwhNb/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-05-23T20:32:12.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/orlnwhNb.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/","duration":"PT7M8S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3825544/obamacare-not-all-birth-control-covered-insurance-companies/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```