 Gillibrand has voted in favor of federal funding of embryonic stem cell research, contraception, and supporting United Nations Population Fund programs.In 2010 Gillibrand voted against Ben Nelson's proposed amendment to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which would have prohibited the government from allowing insurance plans that cover abortion in a national healthcare exchange.She expressed strong opposition to House Republicans' No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act in early 2011, stating, in her opinion, that the act "disregards women’s rights and restricts the ability of women to access affordable health care."