U.S. Repro Watch provides periodic updates of news of interest on U.S. reproductive rights. Here are six recent updates you won’t want to miss:

Woman dies waiting for abortion

1. A North Carolina woman died after struggling to get an abortion. 

• Despite facing a high-risk pregnancy and potential heart failure, Ciji Graham was repeatedly denied standard cardiac care and was not offered an abortion as an option. 
• Graham eventually sought an abortion on her own at a nearby clinic, but due to North Carolina’s abortion restrictions—including a law forcing patients to wait at least 72 hours before getting care—and the influx of patients from states with even stricter laws, she had to wait nearly two weeks for care. She died just days before her appointment.
• Graham’s death is proof of the dangers of abortion restrictions, especially for pregnant people with chronic health conditions.

Wyoming strikes down bans

2. A Wyoming court struck down two abortion bans as unconstitutional. 

• The Wyoming Supreme Court struck down a total abortion ban and a ban on abortion pills, ruling that they violate a 2012 constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to make health care decisions.
• The court wrote: “A woman has a fundamental right to make her own health care decisions, including the decision to have an abortion.”
• In response to the decision, Gov. Mark Gordon urged the state legislature to pass a constitutional amendment banning abortion to go before voters this fall.

Ohio reinstates restrictions

3. An Ohio appeals court allowed several abortion restrictions to take effect, despite voter-approved protections for abortion. 

• An Ohio appeals court reaffirmed that the state’s six-week abortion ban remains unconstitutional but reinstated other provisions that were a part of the law, including a requirement that doctors document and report to the state about abortions provided.
• The appellate panel said that the lower court went too far when it struck down these additional provisions since the plaintiffs did not separately challenge their constitutionality, asking the judge to reconsider his decision. 
• The decision comes more than two years after Ohioans voted to protect their right to abortion. Still, anti-abortion politicians have continued to undermine the will of their voters.  

South Dakota AG sued

4. South Dakota’s attorney general was sued over his censorship of abortion information. 

• Reproductive health organization Mayday Health filed a lawsuit against South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley, accusing him of violating their right to free speech. 
• The lawsuit comes after Jackley sued Mayday for placing billboards with information about abortion pills across the state.
• The group argues that the AG is punishing them for “publishing truthful information about reproductive health care” and that they are protected by the First Amendment “from this bad-faith retaliation transparently intended to chill its speech and score political points.”

California refuses to extradite doctor

5. California refused to extradite a doctor accused of mailing abortion pills. 

• Louisiana’s attorney general requested the extradition of a California doctor based on unproven allegations that he mailed abortion pills to a Louisiana resident in violation of the state’s total abortion ban. 
• California Gov. Gavin Newsom swiftly denied the request, saying: “We will not allow extremist politicians from other states to reach into California and try to punish doctors based on allegations that they provided reproductive health care services.”
• States that ban abortion like Louisiana and Texas have been going after doctors beyond their borders in an attempt to cut off their citizens’ access to abortion pills–the last lifeline for many trapped in these states.

Legislatures fight over abortion

6. States kicked off 2026 legislative sessions with new fights over abortion. 

• South Carolina advanced a bill banning the mailing and provision of abortion pills into the state. The bill goes even further than Texas’s HB 7 by enabling the state to go after and imprison anyone who provides medication abortion into South Carolina.
• Virginia’s House passed a measure to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution. The proposal now moves to the Senate and, if approved, will appear on the 2026 ballot for voters.
• Florida lawmakers advanced a bill that would recognize fetuses as “people” and enable parents to sue over the “wrongful death” of a fetus. 

Did you know?

Did you know?

President Trump has continued efforts to decimate abortion access nationwide, including in states where abortion is legal. In just one year, the Trump administration eliminated nationwide protections for abortion by rescinding federal guidance directing hospitals to provide life-saving abortions in emergency rooms; banned all abortions for veterans on VA insurance; and forced health care facilities to close or reduce services by taking away their Medicaid funding, among other actions. The administration is expected to continue these attacks on abortion, including by imposing new restrictions on abortion pills. 

A new analysis shows that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s decisions on the abortion pill mifepristone have been consistently grounded in science. Between 2011 and 2023, the agency’s actions expanding access to abortion pills closely followed evidence-based recommendations from scientists. These findings debunk Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Marty Makary’s claims that the FDA did not properly consider regulations on mifepristone. Still, despite the drug’s longstanding safety record, the Trump administration has launched a politically-motivated investigation into mifepristone. The FDA has delayed its review until after the midterms, signaling plans to try to further restrict access to abortion pills while avoiding political blowback. 

Coming up

Coming up

January 22: Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

• This January 22 marks the 53rd anniversary of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade which recognized the right to abortion. 
• Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022. Today, sixteen states have total or near-total abortion bans. At least seven women have died because of these abortion restrictions, and there are likely more deaths that have gone unreported.

Learn more