Developments in Abortion, Autonomy, and Access:
This week’s Repro Health Digest walks through the expiration of the one-year “defunding” of Planned Parenthood, new Illinois legislation protecting abortion data privacy, and new laws restricting medication abortion in Iowa and Mississippi. We also discuss the Texas GOP’s anti-IVF platform, the story of another Texas woman who nearly lost her life to the state’s abortion ban, the shifting availability of Planned Parenthood clinics, ballot measure developments, and the Trump Administration’s rescission of teen pregnancy prevention funding. As always, please read on to the end for the news that you need to know.
🚨Action Alert🚨
L4GG is calling on our attorney community to oppose Todd Blanche for Attorney General. Under Blanche’s leadership, DOJ has already staked out anti-abortion positions, including accusing the Biden Administration of ‘weaponizing’ the Freedom of Access to Clinics (FACE) Act against violent anti-abortion protestors and firing several DOJ attorneys involved in FACE Act prosecutions. He is also facing intense pressure from the anti-abortion right to settle lawsuits challenging the FDA’s relaxation of restrictions on mifepristone. If confirmed or allowed to continue in an acting capacity, Blanche is in a position to lead the DOJ’s legal strategy in a direction that could devastate access to reproductive healthcare. We are asking our community to stand up and call on their senators to demand a just and independent DOJ.
L4GG is delivering our Block Blanche letter to the Senate this week → Sign the open letter
Legislation & Litigation:
Overview:
Overview:
The one-year “defunding” of Planned Parenthood has expired, allowing federal Medicaid reimbursements to resume;
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has signed legislation strengthening privacy protections for reproductive health information;
Iowa's telemedicine abortion ban has taken effect, making access to medication abortion more difficult in the state; and
A Mississippi law treating mifepristone and misoprostol under the state’s drug trafficking laws has gone into effect.
The One-Year Defunding of Planned Parenthood Expired in Early July:
The one-year ‘defunding’ of Planned Parenthood and other large abortion providers expired in early July, allowing federal Medicaid reimbursements for essential services to resume. Reportedly, around 30 health centers, which provided contraceptive care to over 40,000 patients, were forced to close since last July. Additionally, according to data compiled by Planned Parenthood, in the past year, 25% less birth control pills were dispensed; long-activing reversible contraception like IUDs dropped by 26%; 20% less breast exam visits occurred; and, STI testing dropped by 10%. The Hyde Amendment has long prohibited federal funding from paying for abortion, so the defund provision succeeded only in hindering low-cost access to basic preventative and reproductive healthcare.
Although many Planned Parenthood clinics will now be able to bill Medicaid once again, some states have enacted prohibitions on state funding for abortion care, following the Supreme Court’s 2025 decision in Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, which essentially allows states to exclude Planned Parenthood from their covered providers. Meanwhile, as KFF points out, the expiration will provide needed relief to the 11 states who stepped up to use state funding to fill the gap created by the defund provision. Although the long-term future of Planned Parenthood and reproductive healthcare funding remains uncertain, the end of the defund provision will allow clinics to see more patients and patients to access care more easily within their communities. While abortion rights advocates have celebrated the news, Anti-abortion activists have reacted in frustration and continued disappointment with the Trump Administration for failing to take more aggressive action on abortion.
New Iowa Law Eliminates Telehealth Option for Medication Abortions:
In Iowa, a strict new law targeting abortion-inducing medications mifepristone and misoprostol has officially gone into effect, heavily restricting how patients access early-term reproductive care. Under House File 2563, signed by Governor Kim Reynolds and effective as of July 1st, Iowans seeking medication abortions must now obtain prescriptions through in-person appointments at a physical medical center. The legislation effectively eliminates telehealth and mail-order options for these prescriptions within the state, requiring an Iowa provider to see the patient in person, perform an ultrasound, provide mandatory counseling, and obtain written consent. While the in-person requirement only applies to Iowa healthcare providers, this law creates additional challenges for those who cannot afford to travel to a physical health center in-state or are unable to access care from a neighboring shield law state, like Minnesota or Illinois. Opponents of this law and medical advocates sharply criticize the measure, warning that forcing multiple medically unnecessary in-person visits, when combined with the state’s mandatory 24-hour waiting period, creates immense logistical hurdles for rural residents and delays time-sensitive care.
Illinois Strengthens Data Privacy Laws for Reproductive Healthcare:
On July 1st, the Reproductive Health Privacy Act went into effect in Illinois. Signed by Governor JB Pritzker in late June, the new law shores up privacy protections for healthcare data by requiring separation of certain records around abortion and gender-affirming care from a patient’s general digital medical records and prohibiting sharing with out-of-state entities except for certain limited purposes. Signed on the anniversary of the Dobbs decision, Governor Pritzker praised the bill as being “yet more progress in rejecting the invasion on privacy rights being perpetrated by states across the country.” According to Guttmacher, in 2025, Illinois absorbed nearly a quarter of abortion patients traveling from their home state for care, making it one of the most critical safety net states for reproductive healthcare. The new law bolsters Illinois’ preexisting protections for reproductive health, including a robust shield law, public and private coverage for abortion care, contraception and medication abortion on college campuses, and strict regulations on misinformation spread by crisis pregnancy centers.
Mississippi Law Tightening Restrictions on Abortion Medications Goes Into Effect:
A new Mississippi law criminalizing medication abortion drugs mifepristone and misoprostol under the state’s drug trafficking laws has taken effect. Under HB 1613, passed in April, it is a crime for anyone to – among other things – transfer, manufacture, distribute, dispense, or possess an “abortion-inducing drug,” unless the drugs are prescribed for a lawful purpose under the state’s strict abortion ban. Alleged violators can face up to 10 years in prison. The crackdown on medication abortion is intended to make it more difficult for people in Mississippi to access telehealth abortion care through shield providers or other third-parties. However, opponents have criticized the potential for heightened criminalization and negative effects on patient care. Democratic Representative Zakiya Summers explained her opposition to the bill, saying that “I think we’re going to end up trapping a lot of people into the criminal justice system simply because they want to have autonomy over their own bodies.” Dr. Bhavik Kumar, a family medicine physician, expressed concern that the law would create confusion for patients and providers and that “healthcare providers are suddenly having to think about laws and rules that have nothing to do with patient safety.”
Trend and Policy Watch:
Texas GOP Adopts Anti-IVF Platform:
The Texas GOP has adopted anti-IVF and anti-surrogacy policies in its official platform, asking lawmakers to “protect fetal life from destructive practices, such as IVF and commercial surrogacy,” prevent “embryo discarding,” and prohibit public funding for procedures that destroy embryonic life.” Although the party’s platform is a non-binding statement of its positions and priorities and cannot mandate legislative action, it is a powerful expression of the political will of some of the state's most far-right factions. Current Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has broken with the party’s position, affirming that he continues to support IVF. However, his position may be informed, at least in part, by the electability politics involved in his current race for state senator against Democrat James Talarico. Polling from Pew Research Center shows that Americans overwhelmingly support access to assisted reproductive technologies, with only 8% stating that access to IVF is a bad thing. Despite this, the anti-abortion movement’s growing focus on fetal personhood has led to rising anti-IVF sentiment. Their opposition is rooted in the belief that life fully begins at fertilization, so procedures like IVF that require the destruction of embryos are necessarily akin to destroying human life.
Another Texas Woman Almost Died As a Result of the State’s Abortion Ban:
Another Texas woman has filed a federal complaint after nearly losing her life to the state’s abortion ban. According to her Complaint, Lynn Callaway learned that she was pregnant last September; however, despite initial excitement, approximately 7 weeks into her pregnancy, she began to experience bleeding and severe abdominal pain. Following a visit to her ob-gyn, which resulted in instructions to monitor her symptoms at home, Ms. Callaway went to an emergency room. There, it was confirmed for her that she was almost certainly in the process of an active miscarriage, but despite this diagnosis and her worsening symptoms, she was again told to go home and wait it out. After several more days, during which she suffered agonizing pain, increased bleeding and chills, she returned to a second emergency room. This time she was told that she was miscarrying and that she had developed an infection, but she was sent home with only pain medication and antibiotics - she was still not offered standard care to terminate the doomed pregnancy that was making her sick. Ultimately, after days of unnecessary suffering, Ms. Callaway was given medication abortion pills by her ob-gyn. When she asked why she had not been helped earlier, her doctor expressed that she would “have to be damned sure that it’s an actual miscarriage to be offering the pill,” seeming to confirm that the reason Ms. Callaway’s care was delayed because of uncertainty about when during a miscarriage a physician can intervene. Months later, Ms. Callaway had to be treated for retained products from the miscarriage, and she has since been diagnosed with PTSD.
Ms. Callaway’s story is far from the only one involving pregnant patients failing to receive standard care for obstetrical emergencies and pregnancy loss. In Texas alone, over 20 women sued the state to expand exceptions for the life and health of the pregnant person after being denied needed abortions. And, several women have needlessly lost their lives to the ban. Despite mounting evidence of the devastating harm caused by abortion bans, anti-choice lawmakers have shown no indication of an intent to amend or eliminate the laws.
A Planned Parenthood Opens in Louisiana and Shutters in Iowa:
Access to Planned Parenthood remains in flux across the U.S. This month, Planned Parenthood Great Plains announced its plans to begin providing care in Louisiana once again. Later this summer, it will offer telehealth services throughout the state, and an in-person clinic will open in New Orleans in the fall. Although abortion is banned at all gestational ages in Louisiana, Planned Parenthood will be able to offer critical health services including STI testing and treatment, contraception, pregnancy testing, and cancer screenings. These services are urgent in Louisiana, which ranks among the worst states in the country for health indicators like STI rates and maternal mortality.
As Louisiana welcomes a new Planned Parenthood, Iowa is losing one of its only remaining clinics. On July 31st, Planned Parenthood’s Iowa City clinic will close its doors - leaving only one clinic left in the state. Last year, four other Planned Parenthood clinics in the state were forced to close. Abortion is extremely restricted in Iowa, with patients only able to access care until about 6-weeks gestational age. Reportedly, the state’s restrictions combined with severe losses in federal funding have forced the organization into restructuring. According to Planned Parenthood’s website, it will continue to offer telehealth services to Iowans. However, with Iowa’s recent passage of a law requiring patients to make an in-person clinic visit for medication abortion, patients’ in-state telehealth options are extremely limited.
Idaho Coalition Submits Signatures for Reproductive Rights Ballot Measure:
In Idaho, a monumental grassroots effort has positioned a reproductive rights initiative on the horizon for the upcoming November election. Idahoans United for Women and Families, a strictly volunteer-led coalition, announced that they have successfully submitted over 110,000 signatures to the Secretary of State’s office to place the Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act on the ballot. The total comfortably clears the state’s requirement of roughly 70,000 valid signatures. The proposed constitutional amendment seeks to restore the standard applicable prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, protecting access to abortion up to fetal viability, alongside explicit safeguards for contraception, miscarriage care, and IVF. The massive mobilization effort follows growing pressure from Idaho medical professionals, who have repeatedly warned that the state’s near-total abortion ban’s vague and narrow exceptions place patients at a severe risk and has forced a devastating exodus of OB-GYNs from the state. The state has also been engaged in years-long litigation over whether its abortion ban violates the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) by failing to adequately permit care in obstetric emergencies.
Trump Administration Abruptly Terminates Teen Pregnancy Prevention Grants:
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Trump administration has abruptly canceled the vast majority of federal grants dedicated to the Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) Program. The sweeping directive slashes 53 of the 67 existing grants, worth approximately $68 million and impacting funding mid-project for state health departments, universities, community groups, and Planned Parenthood affiliates across more than two dozen states. Federal officials defended the decision by arguing that the targeted programs promoted age-inappropriate, “sexually explicit” curricula that normalized adolescent sexual activity and conflicted with the agency’s current mission. Conversely, health advocates and a coalition of Democratic lawmakers have fiercely condemned the mid-cycle terminations, calling them an ideological rejection of evidence-based medicine that actively undermines a program responsible for decades of declining teen birth rates. According to the CDC, teen pregnancy rates have fallen by around 72% in the past 20 years, a decline at least in part attributable to increased access to education and contraception. The cuts to Teen Pregnancy Prevention funding come as some voices on the right have lamented the fall in teen pregnancy rates, framing it as a crisis and a problem to be solved.