This week, we have a victory and a new lawsuit to report out in our fight for reproductive freedom and abortion access. Here’s a quick rundown of what to know:
- On Monday, we filed in federal court to prevent Alabama from prosecuting those who assist people seeking legal abortion care outside of Alabama, in states where abortion is legal. The health care providers we are representing in this case have been forced to stop providing critical information, counseling, as well as practical support to Alabamians who simply want to exercise their constitutional right to cross state lines and obtain legal medical care.
- That same night, we secured a win in a similar lawsuit in Idaho when a federal district judge barred the Idaho Attorney General from prosecuting doctors who refer patients out of state for abortion care. This ruling sends a clear message to Idaho politicians and those across the country looking to draw inspiration from the state’s Attorney General that this brazen, unconstitutional overreach will not be tolerated.
ACLU Supporter, in both cases we want to be clear: Health care providers have a right to counsel their patients on all of their medical care options, including abortion in states where it is legal – and we have a right to travel across state lines to access legal abortion care. Period.
We will continue fighting back against these extreme measures and all attempts to restrict abortion access nationwide – blocking them in the courts wherever we can.
Thank you for making this work possible, especially during these particularly challenging times for reproductive freedom. We could not do it without you.
Onward,
Meagan Burrows
Pronouns: She, her, hers
Staff Attorney, Reproductive Freedom Project, ACLU
P.S. If you would like to take action immediately with us, send a message to Congress and urge them to support legislation that safeguards abortion and all reproductive health care nationwide. Thank you.
American Civil Liberties Union
125 Broad Street, 18th Floor
New York, NY 10004, USA