June 30, 2020 — Yesterday, in a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States followed precedent set in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt and struck down a restrictive admitting privileges law in Louisiana that would have closed all but one clinic in the state. We celebrate this win for people in Louisiana and honor Hope Medical Group for Women and the activists who work tirelessly to protect access to abortion care in their state.

While we are relieved that the Supreme Court upheld precedent, we understand that the Court’s ruling does not definitively protect abortion access in Louisiana or across the country. Legal attacks on abortion will continue.

We further acknowledge that this decision was released in the midst of a national uprising for Black lives and the COVID-19 pandemic, throwing into sharp relief the racism upon which our medical system is founded and the racial health disparities that continue to this day. This decision does not change the reality that Black and Indigenous people and People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQ people, and those living in poverty are still disproportionately harmed by interlocking systems of oppression, which deny reproductive and bodily autonomy. We know that having the “legal” right to abortion does not ensure access for everyone. The fight for reproductive freedom is far from over – and it does not end with the Supreme Court.

The Reproductive Health Access Project mobilizes, trains, and supports primary care clinicians to provide reproductive health care, including abortion. We are guided by the belief that abortion is essential, time-sensitive, basic health care that needs to be accessible to everyone. We focus our efforts on ensuring that all barriers are eliminated and that everyone can freely obtain affordable, compassionate, evidence-based abortion care. Right now, we demand that Congress pass the Women’s Health Protection Act and the EACH Woman Act, two pieces of federal legislation that would explicitly end abortion insurance coverage bans and medically unnecessary restrictions.