Related Blog Posts on Reproductive Health and Rights

Senate Blocks Bill to Defund Planned Parenthood

Last night, the Senate voted 53-46 to block a bill that proposed to strip Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) health centers of key federal funding, which would have seriously undermined the clinic network’s ability to provide critical preventive care to millions of patients. Though many people associate Planned Parenthood with abortion, the organization’s clinics also provide affordable, quality preventive health care and treatment—including routine examinations, cancer screenings, contraceptive services, and HIV and STI (sexually transmitted infections) testing—to 2.7 million people across the U.S. Federal funding enables PPFA health centers to offer these services at a low cost, making them accessible to many patients, including young people, low-income individuals and people of color, who may not otherwise have access to important health care services.

Update on the State(s) of Abortion Access

Over the past year, I’ve followed a slew of state-level abortion laws, which are advancing and passing at alarming rates. In the first half of 2015, states enacted 51 new abortion restrictions, bringing the total number of restrictions passed to 282 in the past five years. Though legislative activity is generally quiet in the states in July, with most state legislatures having completed their session for the year, it’s still an important time for state-level abortion policy. In many states, the new fiscal year begins July 1, meaning that any new abortion laws—or anti-abortion laws, in most cases—passed in the most recent legislative session were set to take effect earlier this month.

Her Body, Her Choice: The Fight Continues

By Elise Sugarman On June 11, Senator Lindsey Graham introduced a Senate version of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act (S. 1553). This bill places a federal ban on abortions 20 weeks post-fertilization and was passed in the House in May by a vote of 242-184. In the Senate, Senator Graham’s bill currently has 45 co-sponsors, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. With his support, it is possible this bill could be put on the legislative calendar.  Although the composition and rules of the Senate make it unlikely, even if the bill does pass the second chamber, it faces the threat of a veto from President Obama.

Take Comprehensive Sex Ed and Family Planning off the Chopping Block

Last week, the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies voted to eliminate programs proven to reduce teen and unplanned pregnancy, reduce abortion, and save tax dollars in fiscal year 2016. By gutting funding to family planning services for low-income individuals and undermining comprehensive sexuality education, the appropriations bill would leave millions of Americans without information and services to keep themselves safe and healthy.

The Right to Use Contraception is Only 50 Years Old

June 7 marks the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Griswold v. Connecticut, which overturned a Connecticut law prohibiting the use of contraception. Although this decision is not as much of a household name as the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which legalized abortion, the 1965 Griswold decision made Roe possible by establishing that married couples have a constitutional right to privacy. The Court extended this right to unmarried couples in Eisenstadt v. Baird (1972), and one year later, the right to privacy formed the bedrock of the landmark Roe v. Wade decision.