Trump marks one-year anniversary of 'grab 'em by the p*ssy' tape by rolling back birth control access

Insult, meet injury.
 By 
Kate Sommers-Dawes
 on 
Trump marks one-year anniversary of 'grab 'em by the p*ssy' tape by rolling back birth control access
President Donald Trump speaks during a briefing with Senior Military leaders in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, but clearly excited about rolling back birth control access. Credit: AP/REX/Shutterstock

Insult, meet injury.

One year after the infamous Access Hollywood tape, which featured the president bragging about sexual assault, became public, his administration is making it harder for women to access contraceptives.

The Department of Health and Human Services has rolled back a provision of the Affordable Care Act which required employers to cover birth control as a preventive service, prohibiting insurers from charging women for the medication. In another step in its march to roll back Obama-era regulations, and rescind the progressive milestones of the last eight years, the Trump administration expanded the kinds of entities that can claim a "religious exemption" to providing women with essential healthcare.


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The administration or HHS did not address whether women who would prefer not to subsidize men's viagra prescriptions would be similarly accommodated.

As NARAL's president, Ilyse Hogue, pointed out on Twitter, there was a certain irony to the timing of the change.

Women, male allies, members of congress, medical professionals, and women's advocates also reacted negatively to the news, under the hashtag #HandsOffMyBC, which was trending as of Friday afternoon Eastern time.

Rep. Jeff Duncan, a Republican from South Carolina, predictably praised the move on Twitter, calling it a win for "conscience rights" and "religious freedom."

In an emailed statement, the Center for Reproductive Rights said it was prepared to fight the "discriminatory" rule change in court. “The Trump administration continues to display a startling disregard for the reality of women’s health and lives," its CEO, Nancy Northup, wrote. "An employer or university can’t be allowed to use religious or moral beliefs to prevent a woman from planning her future and her family."

The ACLU has also announced it's suing the Trump administration over the new rule.

Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., the women's advocacy group Ultraviolet is playing the Access Hollywood tape on loop for 12 hours, in view of the White House, under the hashtag #WeGrabBack.

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Kate Sommers-Dawes

Kate Sommers-Dawes is Mashable's deputy managing editor based in the company's San Francisco office.She is an international adventurer, social good enthusiast, and 1,000-person dance contest winner.

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