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

Center sues Trump Admin

1. The Center for Reproductive Rights sued the Trump administration after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) refused to release any information about its decision to re-evaluate abortion pills and how they are regulated.

• There is serious concern that ideology, not science, is dictating the government’s review of mifepristone—an abortion pill that has been FDA approved for 25 years and since used by 7.5 million women in the U.S. alone. 
• The Center is seeking records under the Freedom of Information Act that document any political interference. So far the government has ignored the Center’s requests. 

Medicaid cuts allowed

2. A federal appeals court allowed the Trump administration to cut Medicaid funds to Maine Family Planning and Planned Parenthood.

• In July, President Trump signed a sweeping spending bill that includes a provision preventing both Maine Family Planning (MFP) and Planned Parenthood from receiving federal Medicaid reimbursement.
• The Center sued the administration on behalf of MFP, which operates 18 clinics across Maine. Despite the fact that half of MFP’s patients rely on Medicaid, a federal court recently refused to stop the cuts to the organization.
• A federal court reinstated Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood soon after the cuts were enacted, but an appeals court has now suspended that ruling. Because of this decision, one million patients will now be unable to use their Medicaid insurance to pay for health services at Planned Parenthood.

Vets oppose proposed abortion ban

3. Veterans and lawmakers are publicly opposing the Trump administration’s proposal to ban abortion for all veterans, even in cases of rape and incest.

• 231 lawmakers, 22 governors, and 22 state attorneys general submitted letters opposing the policy change, calling it extreme and unsupported by legal precedent.
• The Trump administration’s proposed rule would prohibit abortion at Veterans Affairs health care facilities, including in instances of rape or if the mother’s health is in danger.
• More than 20,000 public comments were submitted, including hundreds from veterans condemning the rule as harmful, dangerous, and politically motivated. Read the Center’s comment here.

Human rights dropped from reports

4. The Trump administration eliminated mentions of human rights violations, including on reproductive rights, in its international reports. 

• The State Department annually releases reports on the human rights conditions of over 200 countries, to inform policy and hold governments accountable for abuses.
• The Trump administration’s reports abandon internationally accepted definitions of human rights and cut out reports on the status of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR). References to a wide range of other human rights issues have also been removed.

New York opposes Texas lawsuit

5. New York stepped in to stop Texas from enforcing its abortion ban across state lines.  

• NY attorney general Letitia James is intervening in a lawsuit brought by Texas’ attorney general against a telehealth provider based in New York. James vowed to defend New York’s shield law protecting the state’s health care providers from legal actions by other states. 
• New York is one of 18 states that have enacted shield laws and one of eight with explicit protections for doctors who provide abortion care through telemedicine.

Costco won’t sell abortion pills

6. One of the U.S.’ biggest retailers announced it would not dispense abortion pills anywhere in the country. 

• Costco will not dispense the abortion pill mifepristone in any of its 500+ pharmacies. The announcement comes after anti-abortion groups urged several retailers, including Costco, against carrying the medication. 
• Anti-abortion advocates signaled plans to now target Walgreens and CVS, both of which dispense abortion pills in states where abortion is legal.

In other state news…

7. In other state news…

• Louisiana’s government has failed to provide oversight of public money given to anti-abortion centers over the past year, as required by state law. Last year, an investigation found that Texas’s funding pipeline to anti-abortion centers was riddled with waste and may not have addressed families’ needs.
• Another group of Democrat-led states asked the FDA to eliminate the remaining restrictions on abortion pills. In a petition, attorneys general from 17 states and Washington, D.C., argued that the abortion pill mifepristone is safe and needlessly restricted. California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York filed a similar petition earlier this summer.
• South Carolina lawmakers will soon consider an extreme total abortion ban that would threaten people with homicide charges and a 30-year prison sentence for providing, helping with, or getting an abortion. The bill would also criminalize the sharing of abortion information over the phone or internet, including guidance on how to obtain an abortion out of state. 
• The Texas House passed a bill to allow private citizens to sue anyone who helps another person get abortion pills for up to $100,000. The bill targets drug manufacturers, online telehealth services and websites that provide medication abortion to Texas residents.
• The Texas 5th Circuit reversed a lower court ruling and restored a law protecting pregnancy accommodations for workers, including time off for childbirth.
• California passed legislation allowing abortion pills to be mailed without listing the names of patients, providers, or pharmacists on the labels.

Did you know?

Did you know?

1. A new study found that Idaho lost 35% of its OB-GYNs since its extreme abortion ban went into effect in 2022. Most of the remaining physicians providing obstetric care are in Idaho’s seven most populated counties, leaving only 23 OB-GYNs to serve a population of over half a million across the rest of the state.
2. Telemedicine has become crucial for lower-income people seeking abortion care, a new study found. Researchers at the University of Texas found that 84% of online prescriptions from Aid Access—a telehealth service providing medication abortion—went to patients living in states that ban abortion. The rates were particularly high in counties where more people lived in poverty or had to travel farther than 100 miles to reach a clinic.
3. The National Association of Certified Professional Midwives (NACPM) recently called for the full decriminalization of midwifery, including for unlicensed and community-based practitioners. The U.S. has a long history of excluding and discriminating against midwives. Though studies have shown that births attended by midwives tend to lead to fewer complications, lower C-section rates, and better outcomes, only 12% of births in the U.S. are attended by midwives.
4. In her new memoir, Justice Amy Coney Barrett defended the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, claiming it “respected the choices of the American people.” But polling tells a different story. The majority of Americans support abortion access, including to medication abortion, and this has only increased since the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision.

Coming up

Coming up

September 19: Hearing on case against Ohio’s abortion restrictions

• A state appellate court will hear arguments on whether to let the six-week abortion ban and several abortion restrictions take effect.
• A state court permanently blocked the restrictions last year, after Ohio voters approved an amendment enshrining abortion rights into the state constitution. The state then appealed.

September 26: Kansas abortion providers to testify at trial

• A state court will hear testimony in a case brought by the Center challenging numerous abortion restrictions in Kansas. 
• The trial will begin at 9 AM CT/10 AM ET on September 26 in Johnson County District Court in Olathe, Kansas.