ATLANTA — New legislation introduced in the Georgia State House would allow pharmacists to prescribe and administer hormonal birth control medication.

Bill sponsor Rep. Beth Camp says the proposal is aimed at expanding access to contraception across the state.

“We do believe in women having the right to access contraception, and we felt that moving forward solidifying that by making it more accessible was more important than simply codifying it,” Camp said.

Under the measure, women would also be allowed to purchase a year’s worth of birth control at one time.

Right now, only doctors can prescribe and administer hormonal birth control in Georgia. Camp says the legislation would allow pharmacists to do so within their scope of practice.

“I think this is just a natural progression, to let them practice in their scope of practice, but Tennessee is already doing this and I’ve spoken with lawmakers there and they’re doing it very successfully,” Camp said.

Camp says similar laws are already in place in 36 other states. She says expanding access could be especially important in rural areas where medical care is limited.

“There are counties in south Georgia that really a pharmacy is all they have. There might be one OBGYN for a number of counties, so this is just a great opportunity to expand,” Camp said.

She adds that pharmacists are trained to take on this role.

“These pharmacists are trained, they will be practicing at the top of their scope of practice, still within the scope of practice as 36 other states already do,” Camp said.

If approved, Georgia would join those 36 states with laws allowing pharmacists to prescribe hormonal birth control.

WSB Radio’s Jonathan O’Brien contributed to this story.