We are already facing the consequences of Trump’s first administration. His appointment of three Supreme Court justices established a conservative majority on the bench, a decades-long goal of the anti-abortion movement. When that court voted 6 to 3 to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, they eliminated the federal right to abortion. Trigger laws allowed 13 states to immediately instate bans. And despite the success of some pro-abortion ballot measures, as of today only 15 states protect abortion rights to any degree. The results of these bans have been devastating. Roughly one in five patients nationwide have had to travel out of state to access abortion. Inequities in access to reproductive care have widened. Pregnant people denied emergency medical care have suffered and died. Infant mortality and maternal mortality have increased in ban states.
Things will only get worse. We must assume the Trump/Vance administration will follow the Project 25 playbook, further devastating reproductive rights. Here is a sampling of those recommendations: 1) Target medication abortions with moves against mifepristone, a medication used to end pregnancies. A majority of abortions now utilize this medication, and many people rely on telehealth to access a prescription. The administration could move to require in-person visits to prescribe mifepristone or attempt to reverse its FDA approval altogether. 2) Ban the mailing of medicines and equipment used to perform abortions by enforcing the 1873 Comstock Act. Anti-abortion activists have already begun testing this approach in Texas, and just down the road in Danville. 3) Prohibit federal funds from covering abortion care. This could remove funding from Planned Parenthood, impact people who receive Medicaid and Medicare, and affect millions who get health insurance through the federal government such as military personnel, prisoners, and Peace Corps volunteers. 4) Implement a “gag rule” that would block US money to any domestic or international organizations that “provide abortion services, information, counseling, referrals or advocacy.”
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