Supporters of a South Carolina bill requiring insurance companies to cover a year’s worth of birth control pills say it will prevent unintended pregnancies and save the state money.

Although doctors typically write a yearlong prescription, insurance companies generally pay for either a month or three-month supply at a time, depending on the policy.

They won’t pay even a few days early, and it can be difficult for working women to get to the pharmacy on the day their next month’s supply will be covered, which can lead to missed pills. House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford, D-Columbia, said that’s particularly an issue for women in rural South Carolina.

SOURCE:, April 4, 2017