National Guides

ADVANCING ABORTION ACCESS

Reproductive rights are essential to living a life of freedom, autonomy, and dignity. Despite strong public will in support of access to abortion care, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, marking the end of a guaranteed right to abortion for people across the country. This means that a small, extremist group defied settled law and stole a basic right from us. Access to abortion care is now up to whichever politicians are in power in a state at any given moment—and the attacks have come swiftly. Twenty-six states are poised to ban or severely restrict abortion. Many have already done so, forcing pregnant people to travel hundreds or thousands of miles for care while others are forced to remain pregnant against their will. And radical politicians want a national ban that would make abortions illegal in every state  

Making abortion illegal harms people who already face unequal access to health care, especially people of color. It also threatens women’s economic security and pushes families into poverty.  

We need elected officials to prioritize policies that protect the ability of every person to have the freedom they need to make personal decisions without interference from extremist politicians who want to control us. It is the job of our lawmakers to make sure our laws safeguard our ability to choose if, when, and how to start a family, including protecting access to affordable and available abortion care. 

Policies candidates & lawmakers should support:

  • 1.Create a new federal right that guarantees that the right and access to abortion does not depend on where a person lives or how much money they make.

  • 2.Ensure that people’s access to abortion care is free from stigma, barriers, and restrictions.

  • 3.Make sure our federal budgets fully fund reproductive health care, including birth control and abortion care.

Questions to ask federal candidates:

  • 1.Given the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and as states continue to ban abortion, how have you—or how will you—work to create a new federal right to abortion?

  • 2.How have you advocated for policies that help people get abortion care?

  • 3.Will you commit to protecting people seeking reproductive care and those who help them, including abortion providers, abortion funds, pharmacists, and others?

  • 4.What will you do to guarantee our policies and budgets ensure affordable and available reproductive health care, including birth control and abortion care?

  • 5.What are you doing to learn about what is happening in your state for people who are seeking abortion care and those who are trying to support them? How are you making sure their needs are being reflected in the policies you support?