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Until two years ago, university clinics and local health centers were able to offer prescription birth control to patients at a much lower cost than the sticker price. But in the summer of 2007, students on college campuses and low-income women nationwide saw the price of prescription birth control skyrocket.
As a senator, President Obama authored legislation to bring these costs back down. The 2009 federal budget bill passed by the House and Senate included the fix, so the correction went into effect when President Obama signed it.
Why did Prices Spike?
What happened is technical. Basically, in 2005, Congress amended federal law though the Deficit Reduction Act—and made an unfortunate error that eliminated incentives for pharmaceutical manufacturers to provide discounts on prescription birth control to college campuses and local health centers. Higher prices for clinics led to higher prices for patients.
Media Coverage
A number of local and national news outlets covered this issue:
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