Preventive care such as birth control, anti-HIV medicine challenged in Texas lawsuit

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/08/09/ [login to see] /preventive-care-such-as-birth-control-anti-hiv-medicine-challenged-in-texas-laws
The Affordable Care Act has survived many challenges in court, but the case of Kelley v. Becerra – now before a federal judge in Texas – threatens to undermine one of the most popular provisions in the law, which requires most health plans to provide coverage for preventive care with no copays.

If the judge rules in favor of the plaintiffs, access to free birth control, cancer screenings, vaccines, PrEP (HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis), counseling for alcohol misuse, diet counseling for people at higher risk of chronic disease, and many more preventive services would be in jeopardy, according to the nation's leading doctors' groups, which have sounded the alarm.

"The lawsuit could cause millions of Americans, probably more than 150 million, to lose guaranteed access to preventive services," Dr. Jack Resneck, president of the American Medical Association, told NPR. "There's really a great deal at stake," he said.

The doctors' group points to research showing that expanded access to preventive care and coverage, ushered in by the ACA, has led to an increase in colon cancer screenings, vaccinations, use of contraception and chronic disease screenings. There's also data to show that expanded coverage has reduced racial and ethnic disparities in preventive care.