Maryland community colleges would be required to offer 24/7 contraception access and increased reproductive health services to students by August 2025, if a new bill passes the state legislature this spring.
This year’s bill echoes a similar one signed into law last May by Governor Wes Moore. Since then, certain four-year colleges — including those in the University of Maryland system, Morgan State University and St. Mary’s College — have been creating comprehensive sexual health plans.
And many are turning to vending machines to house 24/7 contraception, like condoms, morning-after pills and — potentially — the first federally-approved over-the-counter daily birth control pill.
These emergency contraception vending machines started popping up on college campuses nationwide after the overturning of Roe v. Wade in June 2022. More than 60 colleges nationwide currently house these machines.
But only three other states have passed similar laws increasing emergency contraception access on college campuses.
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