Introduction

Shield laws are legal protections enacted by states to safeguard providers of reproductive health care services, such as abortion. These laws are designed to prevent out-of-state legal actions from affecting those who provide legal care within the shield law state.

For example, if a doctor in a shield law state, like New York, performed an abortion for a patient from a state where abortion is restricted or banned, like Texas, the shield law would protect that doctor from legal consequences imposed by the state of Texas.

These laws are becoming more and more significant. Post-Roe, states with restrictive abortion laws are trying to extend their legal reach beyond their borders. Shield laws keep these states from penalizing providers in states where abortion remains legal.

Why shield laws matter

Why shield laws matter

1. Shield laws help providers and patients: Shield laws help ensure that doctors, nurses, and other providers can offer abortion care to out-of-state residents– knowing their state will protect them if they are sued or charged by another state. 
2. According to #WeCount: by the end of 2024, an average of 12,330 abortions per month were provided under Shield Laws. They ensure continued abortion access for patients who travel from ban states for in-person care
3. Shield laws push back against legal overreach: Anti-abortion lawmakers want to end all abortion access—even outside their borders. Shield laws are a way for protective states to say: “Your laws stop at your borders. We won’t help enforce your ban.”
4. Shield laws support our human right to access abortion and other health care: As more states in the U.S. ban and restrict abortion, people living in restrictive states are being forced to travel hundreds of miles to obtain abortion care in a state where abortion access is protected. Shield laws protect abortion providers, helpers, and patient medical records from civil and criminal consequences when they provide abortion and other health care to patients living in restrictive states. These protections are critical to help people access abortion no matter where they live and to protect people’s right to health, life, privacy, bodily autonomy, and self determination.

What shield laws do

What shield laws do

Shield laws vary by state, but most include several key protections. These protections help ensure that people acting legally in their own state aren’t punished by another state’s laws.

1. Shield laws block out-of-state subpoenas and investigations: If someone in a state where abortion is banned tries to investigate or sue a provider in a shield law state, the shield law state will not share information or cooperate.
2. Shield laws prevent arrest and extradition: Shield laws block efforts to detain and send  someone to another state for criminal charges related to abortion care that is legal in the shield state.
3. Shield laws protect medical records and information. Some laws stop clinics and doctors from having to share patient information with states that want to investigate abortion-related care.
4. Shield laws allow people to counter sue. In some states, people who are targeted by out-of-state lawsuits for providing or receiving care can sue back for damages.

Where shield laws are in effect

Where shield laws are in effect

As more states pass and enforce restrictive abortion bans, more states are also passing shield laws. These laws are one way states can fight back, making sure that their residents—and visitors—are protected from legal threats when accessing reproductive health care.

Not every shield law is the same and some states offer broader protections than others. As of 2025, there are 18 states with some form of these laws. 

Currently, ten states’ shield laws only shield providers for providing abortion care when the patient is physically within the shield law state: Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington, D.C.

Additionally, eight states’ shield laws include protections for providers using telehealth to provide medication abortion remotely: California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.