WASHINGTON — The Senate has passed a spending bill that includes an amendment extending coverage of prescription contraceptives to people insured under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan.

Sens. Olympia Snowe of Maine and Harry Reid of Nevada sponsored the amendment. It was included as part of a larger spending bill funding the Treasury Department and U.S. Postal Service for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1. The legislation must still be worked on by a House-Senate conference committee.

“The federal government serves as a role model for other employers across the nation, and this step sends a signal to insurers nationwide: Prescription contraceptive coverage is a long-overdue provision for health plans for all women of reproductive age,” said Snowe in a statement.

The Snowe-Reid amendment would provide that plans that already cover outpatient services also cover medical and counseling services to promote the effective use of contraceptives. Religious-based plans would be exempted from the requirement. Nine million federal employees, retirees and their dependents participate in the federal employee health plan, including 1.2 million women of reproductive age.