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

Midwife protections in Hawai’i

1. Hawai‘i expanded protections for midwives following a lawsuit by the Center for Reproductive Rights.

• In 2024, the Center challenged several restrictions on midwifery in Hawai‘i, including the criminalization of Native Hawaiian traditional birthing practices. In response to the lawsuit, the Hawai‘i state legislature passed a bill repealing many of these restrictions.
• Both the bill and a joint agreement between the state of Hawai‘i and the Center filed earlier this week ensure that Native Hawaiian practitioners can continue providing culturally informed care without the threat of prison time. 
• This marks an important step towards protecting and expanding access to midwifery in a state that faces a shortage of maternal health care providers and a dire maternal mortality crisis.

Trump’s new IVF policies

2. President Trump announced new, narrow IVF policies.

• The Trump administration unveiled a deal with pharmaceutical company EMD Serono to lower the cost of IVF-related drugs for some patients and proposed a plan to allow employers to offer fertility benefits, similar to dental or vision insurance.
• The recommendations do not require IVF to be covered by insurance and therefore do not meaningfully improve IVF access.
• IVF can cost up to $30,000 per cycle without insurance, putting it out of reach for many. Insurance mandates are an important way to ensure that people have equitable access to the quality fertility care they need.

Office of Population Affairs gutted

3. At the same time, the Trump administration gutted a federal agency responsible for overseeing family planning programs. 

• Nearly the entire staff of the Office of Population Affairs was reportedly fired, leaving no one to administer the Title X family planning program.
• Title X is the only federal program dedicated to family planning and funds critical services including birth control and STI testing. 
• Without administrative oversight, millions could lose access to these reproductive health services.

Did you know?

Did you know?

Research continues to show how abortion restrictions weaken the entire economy. The Institute for Women’s Policy Research found that abortion restrictions across the country cost the U.S. economy over $133 billion annually. The 16 states with total and near-total abortion bans are responsible for over $64 billion of those losses. Without these barriers to reproductive health care, some states’ gross domestic product would grow by 0.8% or more, improving the economy.

Coming up

Coming up

October 31: Clinics in Maine to stop offering primary care due to Trump’s Medicaid cuts

• President Trump took away nearly $2 million in Medicaid funding from Maine Family Planning (MFP) earlier this year, simply because it also provides abortion care. MFP operates 18 clinics throughout the state.
• Without these funds, MFP will have to cease primary care services by October 31, leaving hundreds of Medicaid patients without a primary care provider. 
• MFP, represented by the Center, is suing over the cuts and asking a court to reinstate this critical funding. 

Learn more