The Trump administration sent a letter to the United Nations on Monday urging the UN to remove references to reproductive health and abortion in its COVID-19 humanitarian response plan. The letter was sent from John Barsa, acting administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The letter urges the UN to eliminate all mentions […]
Alabama Nonprofit Yellowhammer Fund Buys Abortion Clinic
Yellowhammer Fund, an Alabama reproductive justice organization, purchased last week the West Alabama Women’s Center abortion clinic. The clinic is one of three abortion clinics left in the state. In their May 15th announcement, the group stated, ”West Alabama Women’s Center has been a hub for abortion access for nearly three decades, and we want […]
Court of Appeals Lifts Oklahoma Abortion Ban
On March 27th, Oklahoma Kevin Stitt issued an executive order postponing elective procedures and surgeries, including “any type of abortion services… which are not a medical emergency… or otherwise necessary to prevent serious health risks” to the pregnant person. On April 6, Judge Charles Goodwin of Oklahoma’s Western District Court placed a temporary stay on […]
Attorneys General Urge the FDA to Allow Use of Mifepristone by Mail During COVID-19 Pandemic
In response to abortion-related concerns taking place during the COVID-19 outbreak, a group of 21 attorneys general are urging the federal government to allow pregnant individuals to use mifepristone if they would like to terminate their pregnancy without unnecessary travel. According to Huffington Post senior reporter Melissa Jeltsen, the current system in place requires that […]
New Zealand Decriminalizes Abortion
On Wednesday, March 18, New Zealand lawmakers voted on and passed a bill that treats abortion as health care and not as a crime, with a vote of 68 to 51. In Nick Perry’s Associated Press release published by ABC news, Margaret Sparrow, 84-year-old doctor and advocate for reproductive rights, said that, “it’s been a […]
Moroccan Journalist Arrested for Alleged Abortion
Prominent Moroccan Journalist, Hajar Raissouni and her fiancé, Rifaat al-Amin are currently on trial for having pre-marital sex and an abortion, both considered criminal offenses in Morocco. The medical team accused of performing the abortion is also on trial; Dr. Mohammad Jamal Belkeziz could face up to 10 years in prison. Despite accusations by authorities, […]
New Report Says U.S. Abortion Rate is Lowest Since Roe v. Wade
According to a report by the Guttmacher Institute released Wednesday that outlines changes in abortion statistics between 2011 and 2017, the United States abortion rate has hit an all-time low since the procedure became legal nationwide in 1973. The 48-page research document, used by policymakers and activists on both sides of the abortion debate, provides […]
New Zealand Bill Aims to Decriminalize Abortions
The debate in New Zealand surrounding the legalization of abortion has erupted today in response to the New Zealand government introducing a bill that would decriminalize abortions nationwide, giving people the option to terminate a pregnancy up to twenty weeks. The bill was a significant part of Prime Minister Jacinda Arden’s campaign agenda, which was […]
Doctor Prescribing Fake Abortion-Reversal Pill Shown to be Lying about Credentials
Last Thursday, an expository report by The Guardian revealed that Doctor George Delgado has been falsely claiming an affiliation with University of California San Diego medical school (UCSD) while he has been prescribing medication that he claimed would reverse a medication abortion. Despite UCSD requesting that he stop affiliating himself with the university one year […]
Federal Judge in Arkansas Delays Enforcement of Three Anti-Abortion Laws
Last week, U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker issued a two-week restraining order, effectively delaying the enforcement of three laws restricting abortion access in Arkansas. In the opinion, the Court found that “the threat of irreparable harm to plaintiffs and the public interest, outweighs the immediate interests and potential injuries to the defendant.” The lawsuit was […]
Trump Administration Delays Enforcement of Title X Abortion Restriction
On Saturday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) sent out a notice to federally funded family planning clinics, stating that clinics would be given extra time to comply with a Trump administration rule announced last week that eliminated Title X funding for clinics that provide abortion referrals. The notice stated that the government […]
Parliament Votes to Protect Same-Sex Marriage and Abortion in Northern Ireland
Last week, U.K. members of parliament (MPs) voted to extend same-sex marriage and abortion rights in Northern Ireland via two measures that will go into effect as long as the regional government in Northern Ireland remains defunct. The Chief Executive of the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, Ann Furedi, told CNN that Tuesday’s vote on abortion […]
Oklahoma Judge Upholds Ban on Second-Trimester Abortions
The Center for Reproductive Rights has vowed to take an Oklahoma abortion-ban to the state Supreme Court after an Oklahoma district judge upheld a law banning second-trimester abortion procedures last Friday. The Oklahoma Supreme Court has previously rejected multiple anti-abortion bills similar to this ban. The Center for Reproductive Rights challenged the Oklahoma law after […]
Judge Blocks Ohio’s Fetal Heartbeat Law
Last Wednesday, U.S District Judge Michael Barrett temporarily blocked an Ohio law that would ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, allowing clinics to continue to provide abortions. The law was slated to take effect this month, but Judge Barrett issued a preliminary injunction, blocking the law from taking effect while it is […]
Suit has been Filed against Georgia’s Six-Week Abortion ban
Last Friday, the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood, and the Center for Reproductive Rights filed suit against Georgia’s restrictive six-week abortion ban in the U.S District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. The legal challenge states that the Georgia law is “an attack on low-income Georgians, Georgians of color, and rural Georgians, who […]
Study Proves that Global Gag Rule Increases Unplanned Pregnancies
The medical journal The Lancet released a study on Thursday examining the impact of the global gag rule, officially known as the Mexico City Policy, on the rate of abortions in sub-Saharan Africa. Researchers discovered that rather than decrease the amount of abortions as anti-choice advocates advertised, the policy increased abortion rates by approximately forty […]
Appeals Court Rules that Trump’s Family Planning Restrictions can take Effect Immediately
Last week, the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that a family planning “gag rule,” which would strip federal Title X funding from any clinic that provides abortions or abortion referrals, could go into effect immediately. The new rules ban Title X funded-clinics—which serve approximately 4 million low-income Americans—from both making abortion […]
Last Remaining Abortion Clinic in Missouri Denied License Renewal
The sole remaining abortion clinic in the state of Missouri is waiting on a further decision from the circuit court after the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) declined to renew their license last Friday, citing concerns for patients and perceived regulatory violations that were not fixed after an inspection. With the license […]
Rhode Island Codifies Rights Granted under Roe v. Wade
Rhode Island governor Gina Raimondo signed the Reproductive Privacy Act (RPA) into law, a monumental moment for the protection of abortion rights in the state. The bill codifies the privacy rights that were established in Roe v. Wade, meaning that if Roe were to be overturned on the federal level, citizens of Rhode Island would […]
Health and Human Services Defends Attack on Title X
On Wednesday, June 19, 2019, the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the Committee on Energy and Commerce met to discuss the Department of Health and Human Services new Title X regulation, dubbed as the ‘gag-rule’, that would ‘gag’ health care providers who are Title X funded from telling their patients how and where they can […]
