Close X
Monday, November 25, 2024
ADVT 
National

B.C. advocates cheer free contraception plan

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 28 Feb, 2023 05:42 PM
  • B.C. advocates cheer free contraception plan

VICTORIA - British Columbia advocates are celebrating news the province is set to become the first in Canada to make prescription contraception free to all residents this spring, with $119 million earmarked over three years in the budget released today.

The announcement first promised by B.C. New Democrats ahead of the 2020 election was part of Finance Minister Katrine Conroy's budget speech.

The new program set to take effect April 1 will cover prescription contraception options, including most oral hormone pills, contraceptive injections, copper and hormonal intrauterine devices and subdermal implants, along with so-called Plan B, also known as the morning-after pill.

Teale Phelps Bondaroff, chair of the AccessBC campaign for free prescription contraception, says the policy is exactly what his organization has spent years calling for, and advocates are "so excited."

Bondaroff says free prescription contraception improves health outcomes for infants and mothers, makes life more affordable and equal, and he expects it will also save the government millions of dollars each year.

He says there's more work to be done to improve access to sexual and reproductive health care in general, but members of the campaign hope B.C. "will become a beacon of hope for reproductive justice across Canada and North America."

In her speech on Tuesday, the finance minister said fundamental reproductive rights are under attack all too often, but not in B.C.

Conroy estimated that a person who spends $25 every month on contraception will save about $10,000 in their lifetime with the new plan.

"This is a win for health and it's a win for gender equity in our province. And it's about time," she said of the move to provide free prescription contraception.

"The days of passing down these costs to women, trans and non-binary people are coming to an end."

MORE National ARTICLES

B.C. announces $500 million renter protection fund

B.C. announces $500 million renter protection fund
Premier David Eby says the fund will allow non-profit groups to buy older buildings and protect renters from property speculators. Eby says in B.C. and across Canada older rental buildings are being purchased by property speculators and large corporations that redevelop the housing, evict the current tenants and either increase the rent or sell the units.    

B.C. announces $500 million renter protection fund

Canfor to close pulp line in Prince George, B.C.

Canfor to close pulp line in Prince George, B.C.
The shut down will result in a reduction of 280,000 tonnes of market kraft pulp annually. Canfor says the decision to close the pulp line at the Prince George mill came after an "extensive analysis" of its operations and the long-term supply of fibre in the area.

Canfor to close pulp line in Prince George, B.C.

3 Surrey homicide victims identified

3 Surrey homicide victims identified
On January 9, 2023, shortly after noon, Surrey RCMP attended a residence in the 15600-block of 112 Avenue. Upon arrival, officers discovered three deceased adults inside the home. The IHIT says the bodies of 56-year-old Xiao Yan Zhen, 58 year-old Li Li and their 24-year-old son, Daniel Li, were in the home.      

3 Surrey homicide victims identified

Storm lashes B.C. south coast with rain, wind

Storm lashes B.C. south coast with rain, wind
Rain and wind warnings cover much of Vancouver Island and the inner south coast as the remnants of a storm that brought flooding to California now hammers southern B.C. Environment Canada estimates total rainfall of 50 to 100 millimetres before conditions ease Friday.

Storm lashes B.C. south coast with rain, wind

New Westminster Police on the lookout for a blue Pontiac Sunfire after man brutally assaulted

New Westminster Police on the lookout for a blue Pontiac Sunfire after man brutally assaulted
The New Westminster Police Department Major Crime Unit has learned the victim was assaulted by someone who was with two other people at the time of the assault. After the assault, the group left the area in a vehicle, and investigators are hoping by sharing video of this vehicle, a suspect will be identified.

New Westminster Police on the lookout for a blue Pontiac Sunfire after man brutally assaulted

Man arrested and charged for carrying a gun into a Downtown bar: VPD

Man arrested and charged for carrying a gun into a Downtown bar: VPD
VPD officers responded to Granville and Robson Street around 6 p.m. Monday, after a witness reported seeing a man with a gun inside a bar. Marcus Phillip Van Schilt, 45, is now charged with possession of a weapon and breaching bail.  

Man arrested and charged for carrying a gun into a Downtown bar: VPD