News & Updates
Media Inquiries
If you’re a member of the media and looking to speak with an expert at Reproductive Equity Now, contact our press team at press@reproequitynow.org!
If you have a general question or comment, please email info@reproequitynow.org.
Bay State Banner | Annual Black Maternal Health Conference to center role of fathers
“Massachusetts has earned national recognition as a beacon of what high-quality health care should look like in our country. But even here, we see alarming disparities in health outcomes — especially for Black birthing people,” said Lyv Norris, Massachusetts state director for Reproductive Equity Now, in an email.
Reproductive Equity Now is a sponsor of the maternal health conference.
CT Mirror | Abortion providers need appreciation, protection, support
An op-ed co-authored by Connecticut State Director Liz Gustafson.
“On March 10 we recognized Abortion Provider Appreciation Day, a day to celebrate the bravery, compassion, and resilience of those who provide abortion care. While recognition is important, it is not enough. If we truly value these essential health care providers, we must fight to protect them.”
New Hampshire Bulletin | House shuts down effort to recognize abortion as critical to women’s health in New Hampshire
“Several House majority lawmakers campaigned on a promise not to further restrict access to abortion care in New Hampshire,” Reproductive Equity Now, a Boston-based advocacy group pushing for abortion access across New England, said in a statement. “But when they had an opportunity to follow through on this promise by affirming that an individual’s right to terminate their pregnancy, prior to 24 weeks gestation, shall not be denied or infringed upon, they did not.
Union Leader | ICYMI: NH Lawmakers Publish Op-Ed Calling on Legislature to Affirm Abortion As Basic Health Care
New Hampshire State Senator Debra Altschiller (D-Stratham) and State Representative Mary Hakken-Phillips (D-Hanover) co-authored an op-ed published in the New Hampshire Union Leader, titled “Abortion Is Basic Health Care,” urging the New Hampshire Legislature to affirm Granite Staters’ right to abortion care. This op-ed was drafted in partnership with Reproductive Equity Now, a reproductive rights organization working across New Hampshire and New England to make equitable access to the full spectrum of reproductive health care a reality for all people. Read more HERE or below.
InDepthNH | Abortion Should Be a Woman’s Right in New Hampshire, Committee Told
Claire Teylouni, of Reproductive Equity Now, Inc., said New Hampshire is the only state in New England without an affirmative right to abortion protection.
“You are not immune from the treats to abortion care we have seen across the country,” she said, “and coming from the federal level.”
Yale Daily News | Connecticut expands contraception access through pharmacists
“For students who don’t have easy access to off-campus transportation or for whom cost is a barrier, these vending machines are life-changing,” Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now wrote in an email to the News.
News 12 Connecticut | ‘I worry for myself.’ Hundreds debate adding abortion and LGBTQ rights to CT constitution
“The overturning of Roe has incited a public health, economic, social and racial justice crisis across the country,” said Liz Gustafson, the state director of Reproductive Equity Now.
GBH | Mass. lawmakers push for abortion without trimester limits
Claire Teylouni, Reproductive Equity Now’s senior director of policy and programs, estimates the change would impact “dozens” of Massachusetts residents each year — an infinitesimally small number compared to the roughly 18,000 abortions Massachusetts residents received here in 2023.
Hartford Courant | CT pharmacists can now prescribe birth control; Plan B in vending machine at UConn
“Access to contraceptives gives people the ability to control their own reproductive destinies and make personal decisions regarding if, when, or how to start their families,” Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now, said. “By eliminating the need for a visit to a healthcare provider to obtain a prescription for birth control and allowing people to receive the prescription directly from their local pharmacy, pharmacist prescribing will help increase access to contraception for those who face the greatest barriers to care.
Prism | Massachusetts sees sharp rise in out-of-state abortion patients as state bolsters provider protections
Taylor St. Germain, deputy director of Reproductive Equity Now, highlighted the state’s preparedness in an interview with Prism. “When the first Trump administration rolled around, we took proactive action to really make sure that we were codifying abortion in our state law to ensure that no matter what happens, with the fall of Roe, abortion remains legal here in our state,” St. Germain said. “So we passed the ROE Act in 2020, and this law codified the right to abortion care in Massachusetts.”
Trump signs order to reinstate ‘global gag rule’ on abortion aid
“Reinstating the Mexico City policy will have deadly consequences for people across the globe,” Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now, said in a statement. “The United States is a vital partner to healthcare providers and organizations around the world, and robbing those frontline providers of their ability to provide the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare, and even information about people’s options, will result in people losing their lives to pregnancy complications.”
Bay State Banner | Ahead of the Trump administration, state pursues action to protect reproductive health care
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of the Boston-based nonprofit Reproductive Equity Now, called the grants a reflection of the values state leadership holds.
“These organizations are doing essential work to care for Massachusetts patients, and those traveling to our state for care,” she said in a statement. “These investments underscore the Commonwealth’s commitment to reproductive freedom in a post-Roe world.”
Seacoast Online | Is new NH bill a travel ban on abortions or sex trafficking prevention? What politicians are saying
Rebecca Hart Holder, the president of Reproductive Equity Now, called it a “travel ban” in a press release.
“Despite their false claims, 'abortion trafficking' simply does not exist,” Holder said. “Travel bans are about one thing: control. Controlling our bodies, movements, and freedoms. Travel bans are the next step in anti-abortion extremists’ playbook to make essential reproductive health care unattainable, especially for young people.”
NBC Boston | With Trump back in office, where do women's reproductive rights stand?
"The goal here is to control the flow of information," Reproductive Equity Now President Rebecca Hart Holder said. "We know that the Trump administration does not want women to know how to access comprehensive reproductive health care, so I'm disappointed. I'm not surprised."
The Day | New London rally speakers encourage crowd to create a 'firewall' against Trump plans
“We’re just two days out from Trump and his reality-tv appointed cabinet,” Gustafson said, urging the state to create a “firewall” of opposition. “And their plans can be summed up by ‘regression.’ We need every single person in this fight.”
Boston Globe | With Trump’s return to the White House, there’s good reason to be worried
“Overturning Roe was not the endgame, but the midpoint in a quest to end abortion in all 50 states, and more broadly strip us of our bodily autonomy,” said Rebecca Hart Holder, head of Reproductive Equity Now.
WGGB | Getting Answers: reproductive rights in Massachusetts
“We are concerned about what Donald Trump is going to do in a new administration. He does pose an existential threat to abortion care in every single state, including in Massachusetts,” added Rebecca Hart Holder, CEO of Reproductive Equity Now.