New Resource Provides State Policy Recommendations for Advancing Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice
Nearly 60 organizations release proactive vision to support women’s health in U.S.
(PRESS RELEASE) The Center for Reproductive Rights—along with a broad array of nearly 60 women’s health organizations across the U.S.—is calling on state legislators across the country to move in a new direction by promoting policies which support reproductive health, rights, and justice in a new resource available today.
Moving in a New Direction: A Proactive State Policy Resource for Promoting Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice provides proactive policy solutions in the face of a spate of attacks on women’s health care services over the last several years. From expanding contraceptive access to addressing the maternal mortality crisis, the document is intended to serve as a resource for state legislators and advocates throughout the country as they promote proactive state policies to advance reproductive health in the United States.
Said Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights:
“When our elected officials return to work next year, they should focus on advancing measures that truly support women’s health—and reversing the tide of laws that have trampled on women’s rights and blocked their access to health care.
“After years of relentless attacks on reproductive health care, millions of women across the nation are now left with rapidly disappearing safe and legal options.
“This new resource provides forward-thinking and innovative policies for state officials who want to put the lives and well-being of their constituents first. It’s time we move forward with a clear agenda to advance reproductive health, rights, and justice.”
Each section of the resource includes expert-endorsed policies that have been introduced in at least one state, along with in-depth case studies in areas such as expanding abortion access, implementing the Affordable Care Act, expanding contraception access, and supporting pregnant women’s rights.
Today’s resource comes on the heels of a report issued earlier this year which found that states with the highest number of abortion restrictions have the poorest health outcomes and least supportive policies for women and children. The report—produced by the Center for Reproductive Rights and Ibis Reproductive Health— evaluated the assertions of anti-choice politicians against real, evidence-based policies that actually advance the well-being of women and families, finding that many of the same states that have passed abortion restrictions under the guise of protecting women are severely lacking in policies that would truly address the challenges women and their families face every day.
The Center’s commitment to proactive state policies is complemented by the federal Women’s Health Protection Act (S. 1696/H.R. 3471)— a bill that would prohibit states from imposing unconstitutional restrictions on reproductive health care providers that apply to no similar medical care, interfere with women’s personal decision making, and block access to safe and legal abortion services.