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.
WFSB | Expanded paid sick leave bill heads to the governor’s desk
“We are so grateful for the leadership of She Leads Justice, the Connecticut Working Families Party, members of the Paid Sick Days Coalition, and Sen. Julie Kushner for their tireless advocacy to expand paid sick leave to workers across Connecticut,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now, an advocacy group.
Reproductive Equity Now Statement After Connecticut Legislature Passes Bill to Expand Paid Sick Days
“We are so grateful for the leadership of She Leads Justice, the Connecticut Working Families Party, members of the Paid Sick Days Coalition, and Senator Julie Kushner for their tireless advocacy to expand paid sick leave to workers across Connecticut. Every person must be able to access the health care they want and need without the risk of losing their job, their pay, or their economic security. Whether a person is taking time to access abortion care, pregnancy care, or preventative care, they deserve access to paid sick time,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut State Director of Reproductive Equity Now.
Reproductive Equity Now Statement in Advance of Oral Arguments in Case Challenging EMTALA
“This attempt to usurp EMTALA and put pregnant patients’ lives at risk is simply cruel and inhumane. Abortion and emergency labor care are life-saving, life-affirming forms of health care,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut State Director of Reproductive Equity Now.
News 12 Connecticut | CT leaders 'encouraged' after Supreme Court abortion pill hearing
In Connecticut, almost two-thirds of all abortions are induced through medicine. Liz Gustafson had one six years ago.
“Because I knew then, and I still know now, just how safe and effective medication abortion is, I made a decision that was best for my circumstances,” said Gustafson, who is now the Connecticut director for Reproductive Equity Now.
CT Public Health Committee Advances Bill to Protect Doctors Providing Reproductive Health Care Information to Patients
“Connecticut has taken great strides to protect providers and expand access to reproductive health care, but we know that in a post-Roe world, there is more we must do to ensure that every person is able to obtain the care they want and need, when they want and need it,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut State Director of Reproductive Equity Now.
CT Mirror | Bill would protect those at religious hospitals who offer care info
“While providers at Catholic health institutions may be barred from providing reproductive care and gender-affirming care under the institution’s directives, they can also face employment repercussions simply for giving their patients accurate information about their health and where they can access care,” Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now said in written testimony. “The lack of any information sharing about where else a patient might be able to go to seek care can lead to devastating delays. Patients may not even be aware that a health care facility would deny them both health care services and medically accurate information regarding their health.
The Connecticut Mirror | This Abortion Provider Appreciation Day, CT should do more to protect providers
As abortion providers and advocates in the Nutmeg State, we are reflecting on these big changes for Hartford GYN today and especially Sunday, March 10 — on Abortion Provider Appreciation Day. This day honors the life of Dr. David Gunn, an incredibly brave physician who provided abortion care across the deep South, and who was murdered by an anti-abortion extremist on this day in 1993. We celebrate this holiday to honor our communities’ providers, but also recognize and recommit to protecting these heroes as threats against abortion providers rise again in the post-Dobbs era.
WSHU Public Radio | CT lawmakers consider bill requiring insurance companies to expand IVF coverage
“Current Connecticut law only requires private insurance providers to cover fertility treatment for people who meet a limited definition of infertility that is defined in reference to heterosexual intercourse,” Gustafson said. “Because of this narrow definition, single individuals and LGBTQ+ families have been excluded from this coverage requirement.”
News 12 Connecticut | CT doctors push for expanded fertility treatment for LGBTQ+ patients
“The cost of fertility care, such as IVF, can range from $1,000 to tens of thousands of dollars,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director for Reproductive Equity Now.
CT Post | CT insurers would have to cover fertility treatments for singles and LGBTQ residents under bill
Pavalock-D'Amato asked Liz Gustafson, state director for Reproductive Equity Now, details on the Alabama court ruling. "They explained and described and defined an embryo as an extra-uterine child, which is really dangerous in paving the way for personhood laws that is not rooted in science and has been utilized by anti-abortion and anti-assisted reproduction extremists in effort to limit access to the full range of comprehensive reproductive health care," Gustafson said.
Reproductive Equity Now to Advocate for Bold, ‘Beyond Roe’ Policy Agenda This CT Legislative Session
“Last session, Connecticut took historic action to expand access to reproductive health care, protect patients' digital privacy, and pass the first shield law to protect providers and those seeking care in the state. Yet, in a post-Roe America, there is still work to be done. Connecticut has a responsibility to continue to build back a reproductive health care future that goes beyond Roe,” said Liz Gustafson, Reproductive Equity Now Connecticut State Director.
NBC Connecticut | WATCH: CT leaders talk about abortion rights following overturn of Roe vs. Wade
Watch our Connecticut State Director, Liz Gustafson, discuss the imperative of going beyond Roe on what would have been the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade.
CT News Junkie | U.S. Supreme Court Takes Up Abortion Medication Case
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now, expressed concern over the case, highlighting that it doesn’t seem to question the FDA’s original approval of mifepristone but focuses on reinstating pre-2016 restrictions.
CT: Reproductive Equity Now Statement After Supreme Court Grants Cert to Mifepristone Case
CONNECTICUT: Reproductive Equity Now President Rebecca Hart Holder released the following statement after the United States Supreme Court today granted certiorari to U.S. Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, a baseless case that challenges the current accessibility of mifepristone, one of two medications used in a typical medication abortion regimen.
CT Mirror | Connecticut expanded abortion access, but what does that mean?
Meanwhile, reproductive justice advocates in the state continue to organize. The long-standing Pro-Choice Connecticut organization, formerly NARAL Pro-Choice CT, has transitioned into the Reproductive Equity Now Network, a regional organization that is working to expand access to care across the New England region and provide more information to people both in and out of state who are seeking care. They have recently launched an abortion clinic finder.
Reproductive Equity Now Applauds CT Comptroller Scanlon’s Revisions to State Health Plan to Make Fertility Coverage More LGBTQ+ Inclusive
Reproductive Equity Now Connecticut State Director Liz Gustafson released the following statement today after Comptroller Sean Scanlon announced revisions to the state employee health plan and Partnership Plan to remove discriminatory barriers to family planning and to require the Plan to cover fertility services for LGBTQ+ or single members.
CT News Junkie | New England Abortion Access Groups Merge to Bolster Regional Support
Advocates said they can also create a “regional powerhouse” that can serve as a model for groups in states where anti-abortion groups have successfully pushed for bans.
Connecticut Public Radio | Advocacy group expands into Connecticut to bring abortion care to people from restrictive states
Connecticut has joined a coalition of states to bring reproductive healthcare to Americans living in places with abortion bans. It’s organized by Massachusetts-based advocacy organization Reproductive Equity Now.
Hartford Courant | Connecticut shifts fight for abortion rights to regional model
With reproductive freedoms at risk across the U.S., abortion rights activists announced Tuesday that Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire will form the nation’s first regional model for reproductive health care advocacy.
WTNH | Abortion rights advocacy group expands to Connecticut
“By creating a regional powerhouse for reproductive health care advocacy, we can build unstoppable political and organizing power across the country,” said Rebecca Hart Holder, the president of Reproductive Equity Now.