America’s women and families dodged a proverbial bullet today when, by an alarmingly small margin, the Senate rejected a dangerous amendment offered by Senator Blunt (R-MO) that would have allowed any employer to deny coverage for contraception — or any other medical service.

By allowing employers to refuse to provide insurance coverage for any health service they say violates their moral or religious beliefs, this amendment would have opened the door to huge and harmful gaps in health coverage. It was bad policy that would have denied people the coverage they need and, ultimately, endangered lives. Not a single lawmaker should have voted for it.

Women in this country are horrified by how anti-choice extremists have turned women’s health into a political football. Birth control is basic health care for women, and all insurance plans should cover it.

It’s past time for lawmakers to end the war on women and instead return to the business of fixing our health care system, rebuilding our economy and creating good jobs.