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

Maternity care harder to access

1. A new report found it is increasingly difficult to access maternity care in the U.S.

• March of Dimes found that 1 in 3 counties are maternity care deserts—meaning they have no birthing facilities or obstetric providers.
• More than half of U.S. counties also lack a hospital with labor and delivery units. These units are continuing to close across the country, forcing pregnant people to travel longer distances for care.
• The need for more maternity care providers, including midwives, is clear. There are efforts nationwide to expand access to midwives in states like Georgia, where the Center is challenging restrictions on midwifery.

Former prosecutor sued Justice Department

2. A former federal prosecutor sued the Justice Department, alleging she was fired for prosecuting anti-abortion protestors under the FACE Act.

• Former Assistant U.S. Attorney, Sunita Doddamani, claims she was fired as retaliation for prosecuting extremist protestors in a Michigan abortion clinic blockade case. The protestors trapped patients in their cars, some of whom needed urgent medical attention.
• This lawsuit comes as the Center seeks records related to the administration’s pardons of convicted anti-abortion protestors and handling of the FACE Act.

ID judge protects health-preserving abortions

3. A federal court in Idaho ruled the U.S. Constitution protects the right to health-preserving abortions.

• Senior U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill ruled that Idaho cannot criminalize abortions in situations where pregnant people face risks of serious and lasting harm to their health, or if there’s a high risk of self-harm. He wrote, “A pregnant woman’s health is not a state resource to be allocated at the legislature’s whim. The Fourteenth Amendment exists precisely to prevent subjugation like this.”
• This ruling narrowly blocks the state’s abortion bans. Idaho’s bans are so extreme that people have been airlifted across state lines to get emergency abortions.
• Idaho voters will soon weigh in on a measure seeking to overturn the state’s abortion bans and enshrine abortion rights in state law.

Changes to teen pregnancy program blocked

4. A federal judge blocked pro-natalist changes to a national teen pregnancy prevention program.

• The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services attempted to reduce evidence-based programming focused on preventing pregnancy, with fertility tracking, “body literacy,” and “reproductive goals counseling.”
• A federal judge blocked these changes, but the ruling does not restore nearly $70 million in previously canceled funding. Fifty-three programs across more than two dozen states still do not have their grants.

Anti-abortion extremist confirmed as U.S. Attorney General

5. The Senate confirmed anti-abortion extremist Todd Blanche as Attorney General.

• Todd Blanche was confirmed as Attorney General by a narrow vote of 50 to 49, even after leaked audio caught him saying the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade should be made “permanent in every single state.”
• Blanche was also recorded saying he was “putting practices and policies in place” to restrict access to abortion pills. During his confirmation hearings, Blanche pledged to “carefully review” how the DOJ interprets the Comstock Act—a 150-year-old anti-sex law—to block the mailing of abortion pills nationwide or ban abortion altogether.

Anti-abortion extremist nominated to run FDA

6. President Trump nominated Heidi Overton to serve as Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration.

• Overton has publicly celebrated the fall of Roe v. Wade and opposed efforts to protect abortion rights nationwide.
• She has called for more controls on abortion pills and repeated false claims about the safety of mifepristone, despite the medication’s decades-long safety record.
• If confirmed, Overton would oversee the FDA, which regulates abortion medication like mifepristone. This comes amid a politically-motivated FDA “safety study” of mifepristone with potential for nationwide restrictions.

Did you know?

Did you know?

There has been an increase in state legislation to charge people who have abortions with homicide. There were 3 bills in 2024, and that number jumped to 14 bills in 2026. Though these bills have failed to pass so far, states like Tennessee are expected to renew their efforts in the next legislative session. Anti-abortion lawmakers have made clear that their strategy is to normalize the idea of going after patients, by repeatedly introducing the same bill and building support. Earlier this year, Tennessee Rep. Jody Barrett called the state’s legislation “a longshot” and that “it’s going to take a while for people to get their heads around” the idea of criminalizing pregnant people.

Despite a decades-long safety record including more than a hundred studies, recent KFF polling found that 41% of adults are unsure whether abortion pills are safe when taken as directed, including 30% of women 18-49. The survey also found that about a quarter (26%) of the public is aware that most U.S. abortions are medication abortions, while 26% think most abortions are procedural and 48% are unsure. Abortion pills—most commonly mifepristone and misoprostol—make up more than 60% of abortions in the United States. The science on mifepristone is overwhelmingly clear: hundreds of high-quality, peer reviewed studies have confirmed mifepristone is safe and effective. FDA decisions about it have been based on solid science. It is used widely around the world, and by more than 7.5 million Americans since it was first approved by the FDA in 2000.

Coming up

Coming up

August 29: Olivia Rodrigo’s women-led music festival, Daisy Chain Fields

• In the spirit of Lilith Fair, the new music festival features all women artists such as Olivia Rodrigo, Chappell Roan, and Stevie Nicks.
• Net proceeds from the festival will go to organizations advocating for women and girls, including the Center for Reproductive Rights, Planned Parenthood, Black Mamas Matter Alliance, and more.
• Visit here to find out more about the Center’s involvement in the festival and whether your state loves you or loves you not.

September 9: Fifth Circuit to hear arguments over telehealth access to abortion pills

• The Fifth Circuit will hear a case brought by Louisiana seeking to reinstate a requirement that the abortion pill mifepristone be dispensed in person, making it harder to access abortion care.
• Medication abortion—commonly a two-drug regimen of mifepristone and misoprostol—accounts for more than 60% of abortions in the U.S. each year. Telehealth has been a lifeline for patients who live far from abortion clinics.

Learn more