May 23, 2023 – Today, a Montana District Court judge granted abortion providers’ request for a preliminary injunction to block several restrictions on abortion access. The challenge to the laws was filed by Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the Center for Reproductive Rights, and the ACLU of Montana on behalf of All Families Healthcare, Blue […]
Center for Reproductive Rights
House Leaders Reintroduce Bill to Establish Federal Right to Abortion
March 30, 2023 – Members of Congress today reintroduced the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA), legislation that would protect access to abortion across the United States. The legislation—which was introduced with more than 200 co-sponsors—would restore the nationwide right to reproductive autonomy after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year. Members of Congress […]
Center Sues Texas on Behalf of Women Denied Abortions After Facing Dangerous Pregnancy Complications
The Center for Reproductive Rights filed a groundbreaking lawsuit yesterday against the state of Texas seeking to clarify the scope of the state’s “medical emergency” exception under its extreme abortion bans. The case was brought on behalf of five Texas women—each denied abortion care after facing severe and dangerous pregnancy complications—and two Texas obstetrician-gynecologists. While the women’s […]
Federal Bill Ensuring Medicaid Coverage for Abortion Introduced in U.S. House
January 27, 2023 – The EACH Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representatives Barbara Lee, Diana DeGette, Jan Schakowsky, and Ayanna Pressley. This bill would guarantee that people using Medicaid have coverage for abortion services. Statement from Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights: “Even before the Supreme Court […]
Nancy Northup: Statement on the 50th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade
January 20, 2023 – Nancy Northup, President and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, issued the following statement in recognition of what would have been the 50th anniversary ofRoev. Wade, the landmark ruling recognizing the constitutional right to abortion. In June 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court overturnedRoe, clearing the way for states to ban […]
Georgia State Court Blocks Unconstitutional Six-Week Abortion Ban
The Superior Court of Fulton County today struck down Georgia’s ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, allowing health care providers in the state to once again provide essential abortion and miscarriage care to Georgians beyond the earliest weeks in pregnancy. The court’s injunction was issued in a lawsuit filed by abortion providers and […]
This week: 100 Days Since Roe v. Wade Fell
September 28, 2022 – October 2nd marks 100 days since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. In that time, millions of people have lost access to abortion care. Abortion is now illegal in 13 states and 3 other states are currently enforcing pre-viability bans, ranging from […]
Abortion Providers Challenge Trigger Laws in Louisiana After Supreme Court Overturns Roe v. Wade
June 27, 2022 — In the aftermath of the Supreme Court of the United States’ decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the Center for Reproductive Rights and Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, with local counsel Ellie Schilling, today filed a petition and request for emergency relief from the state’s so-called “trigger laws” on behalf of Hope Medical Group for Women (Hope), Hope’s […]
Bill to Protect Abortion Rights Falls Short of Passage in Second Senate Vote
Statement from Nancy Northup, president & CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights: “This is an unprecedented moment. We are likely on the precipice of losing Roe v. Wade, and with it half of the population would lose the right to control their own bodies and futures. We need federal legislation to protect abortion access […]
Vigilante Abortion Ban Takes Effect in Oklahoma
The Oklahoma Supreme Court declined to immediately block a citizen-enforced ban on abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy (S.B. 1503). The Oklahoma state legislature passed the ban on April 28 with anti-abortion lawmakers forestalling any debate or questions. The Court issued its ruling shortly before Gov. Kevin Stitt signed the bill. As a result, until the […]
Supreme Court Refuses to Block Texas Abortion Ban, Greenlights Bounty-Hunting Scheme
December 10, 2021 – Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued decisions in two cases challenging Texas’ ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy (S.B. 8), ending two of the most promising pathways to blocking the ban. In a 5-4 majority, the Court ruled that the most significant part of a case filed by a […]
Abortion Providers’ Brief Filed in TX Abortion Ban Case Before SCOTUS
October 27, 2021 – Today, the Center for Reproductive Rights filed its opening brief in advance of Monday’s arguments when the Supreme Court will hear both Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson and United States v. Texas. These two cases challenge Texas’s ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, known as S.B. 8. The ban […]
Texas Abortion Ban in Effect Again After Appeals Court Ruling
Today—in a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice—the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a request from the state of Texas, allowing the state’s six-week abortion ban (S.B. 8) to take effect once again. The Fifth Circuit lifted a preliminary injunction that had been issued by a lower court on October 6, blocking the ban. Statement from Nancy Northup, […]
New Arizona Abortion Ban Blocked Hours Before Taking Effect
Tonight, a federal district court judge granted a request by Arizona physicians and advocates to temporarily block part of a new Arizona law that was scheduled to take effect tomorrow, Sept. 29. The provision that was blocked would ban abortions sought due to the presence or presumed presence of a fetal condition. In his order, Judge […]
U.S. House Passes Bill to Protect Abortion Access Nationwide
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to protect the right to abortion across the country, passing the Women’s Health Protection Act (H.R. 3755) in a 218-211 vote. The bill protects against abortion bans like the one in Texas (S.B. 8), as well as the Mississippi ban that the Supreme Court will hear later this […]
Appeals Court Blocks Tennessee Abortion Bans
Today, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit blocked a Tennessee ban on abortion starting at approximately six weeks into pregnancy. The court also blocked a ban on abortion based on certain reasons for seeking care, such as a fetal Down syndrome diagnosis or the potential for such a diagnosis. This “reason ban” […]
U.S. Supreme Court Ruling Ends Almost All Abortion Care in Texas
Late last night, the U.S. Supreme Court denied an emergency request to block Texas’ radical new abortion ban (S.B. 8), which took effect yesterday, September 1, and forced almost all abortion in Texas to come to an abrupt stop. This ruling allows the law to remain in effect. The case will now proceed before the Fifth Circuit Court […]
Supreme Court to Hear Abortion Ban Case Challenging Roe v. Wade
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court granted Mississippi’s request to review a case challenging the state’s ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. These kind of bans on abortion prior to viability have been unconstitutional since 1973, when the Supreme Court decided the landmark case Roe v. Wade. In this case, the Court has agreed […]
Court Will Block South Carolina Abortion Ban One Day After Gov. McMaster Signed It Into Law
February 19, 2021 – Today, a federal district court announced that it will temporarily block a law passed yesterday in South Carolina that bans abortion before many people know they’re pregnant. The law took effect yesterday after Gov. Henry McMaster signed it into law. If this abortion ban had been allowed to stay in effect, […]
Nancy Northup: Judge Barrett has the most extreme anti-reproductive rights record since Judge Robert Bork
October 7, 2020 – For only the second time since our founding in 1992, the Center for Reproductive Rights is opposing the confirmation of a U.S. Supreme Court nominee. Less than three weeks ago, the American people lost a champion for gender equality and reproductive rights with the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. On September 26, President Donald Trump nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett […]