U.S. Repro Watch, January 15

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

1. As U.S. Senate confirmation hearings begin for key Trump administration nominees, the Center for Reproductive Rights is launching a new tool mobilizing against anti-repro appointments.

• The Senate is kicking off confirmation hearings this week for many positions that hugely impact reproductive rights in the U.S.
• Explore the Center’s new tool, Repro Red Flags: Agency Watch, to learn more about Trump’s appointees, their anti-repro backgrounds, and the key powers of the agencies they will oversee.

2. New Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled that local city governments cannot restrict abortion.

• While abortion is legal in New Mexico, several cities in the state have tried to effectively ban abortion by passing local ordinances that prohibit abortion clinics from opening there, among other things. 
• The state’s high court unanimously ruled January 9 that these ordinances violate state law and that local governments cannot restrict abortion access.
• More than 14,000 people from Texas—where abortion is illegal—traveled to neighboring New Mexico for abortion care last year.

3. Several laws protecting or expanding reproductive rights took effect across the country.

• New York became the first state to offer paid leave for pregnancy-related care.
• Idahoans can now get a six-month supply of birth control. However, reproductive healthcare access is growing increasingly limited in the state as OB-GYNs flee the state due to abortion restrictions.
• In Delaware, all health insurance plans—including Medicaid—must now cover abortion care.

4. A federal appeals court revived a challenge to New York’s anti-discrimination law, which protects employees seeking abortions.

• The lawsuit, brought by anti-abortion centers also known as “crisis pregnancy centers,” seeks to strike down a 2019 New York law that prohibits discrimination or retaliation against employees because of their “reproductive health decision making.”
• The appeals court ordered a lower court to reconsider its earlier dismissal of the case.
• The anti-abortion centers who brought the case are represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, an anti-abortion group that is also seeking to eliminate access to medication abortion.

5. The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that could strip away Medicaid recipients’ access to Planned Parenthood services.

• The case centers on South Carolina’s efforts to block Planned Parenthood from receiving Medicaid funds because it provides abortion care.
• Planned Parenthood argues that its clinics provide many critical health services beyond abortion and that this move violates Medicaid recipients’ right to choose a qualified healthcare provider. The Supreme Court agreed to review the question of whether Medicaid recipients can sue over that right.
• If the Supreme Court sides with the state, the case could significantly impact access to health services nationwide for low-income communities and communities of color, many of whom rely on both Medicaid and Planned Parenthood clinics for healthcare.

6. A new report details how doctors in states that restrict abortion are struggling to provide emergency abortion care.

• Led by Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, the report found that many doctors have been left with little to no guidance from hospitals on how to navigate abortion bans and care for their pregnant patients in medical emergencies. One Missouri family medicine doctor said “anything directly related to abortion goes without help.”
• 75% of the family medicine providers who spoke to the Committee said they had also experienced physical threats to their safety or verbal threats connected to their employment and the abortion ban in their states.

More young adults have begun opting for permanent forms of contraception after the Supreme Court rolled back the constitutional right to abortion in June 2022, according to a new study published in the journal Health Affairs. The study found that between May and August 2022, the number of tubal sterilizations increased 70% among women age 19–26 and vasectomy services rose 95% among men in the same age group. The increase was greater in states that were likely to ban abortion, researchers said.

“The Dobbs decision has had a profound effect on young adults’ reproductive choices, leading many to opt for permanent contraception in the months following the decision,” said the study’s co-author Julia Strasser, adding, “Young adults expressed themselves that the decisions related to these methods were based on fear or concerns about their safety and that those are playing a role in their contraceptive decision-making.”

January 20: Inauguration Day

• Donald Trump will officially take office on January 20 along with several key officials including anti-abortion advocate Ed Martin. Martin, who does not need Senate confirmation for the role, will serve as chief of staff at the Office of Management and Budget—an agency that oversees federal funds for key programs and could have an impact on how funds are allocated for programs related to women’s health or reproductive rights. Learn more about Trump administration nominees and their positions on reproductive rights.

January 22: Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

• 52 years ago, the Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in Roe v. Wade protecting the constitutional right to abortion.
• Now, with Roe overturned, 17 states ban abortion entirely or as early as six weeks of pregnancy. However, the majority of Americans have been clear in their support for abortion rights—voters in 14 out of 17 states turned out for abortion rights at the ballot box in the last two years.