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.
Axios | Out-of-state abortions in Massachusetts double, but remain low
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of the Reproductive Equity Now coalition, says providers tell her group they're sending thousands of pills out of state.
The pills tend to go to patients who may not be able to afford to travel or who prefer to undergo treatment at home, Hart Holder says.
CT Insider | CT sees 150% increase in people coming from out of state for abortion care, officials say
On an interpersonal level, the abortion ban works to criminalize and further stigmatize the procedure and abortion medication more than it already is, said Liz Gustafson, the Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now.
When she had her abortion, her friend was concerned about her well-being when she couldn't reach Gustafson the following day and the police showed up for a wellness check, she said. Even now, Gustafson said she still feels the internalized shame and stigma of having an abortion.
CT Insider | Opinion: We will not stop protecting abortion in CT
By Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz and Liz Gustafson: Two years ago this month, our nation’s highest court decided in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health, overturning the federal right to abortion. Since then, we’ve watched continued, coordinated extremist attacks on reproductive freedom in courtrooms and legislatures, and on ballots across the country.
Connecticut Public Radio | As abortion care providers see greater demand, CT's Blumenthal proposes legislation to boost funding
An estimated 171,000 patients in the U.S. traveled across state lines since the Dobbs decision to access abortion care “if they can afford to travel at all,” said Liz Gustafson, state director at Reproductive Equity Now.
She said federal funds are needed to meet the demand.
State House News Service | Healey: SCOTUS Ruling Leaves Pregnant Women In "Limbo"
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of advocacy organization Reproductive Equity Now, said the fight over emergency abortion care is “not over,” as she urged voters to elect “reproductive equity champions” this November.
“We know litigation in this case will continue in the coming months, and we would not be surprised to see this question before the Supreme Court again,” Hart Holder said. “It’s hard to celebrate this temporary relief because the question before the Court is so outrageous, insulting, and terrifying in the first place.”
Worcester Telegram & Gazette | 'Beacon' for reproductive rights: Gov. Maura Healey acts to ensure access to abortion in Mass.
“The Supreme Court is to decide whether people with pregnancy complications should be allowed to live,” said Rebecca Hart Holden, president of Reproductive Equity Now.
WWLP | Governor signs executive order protecting access to emergency abortions
“This executive order will continue to make Massachusetts a beacon for reproductive healthcare in a post-Roe world, no matter what the U.S. Supreme Court does. This executive order will save lives,” says President of Reproductive Equity Now Rebecca Hart Holder.
State House News Service | Mass. House approves wide-ranging maternal health bill
“The provisions in this package have been proven to improve birthing experiences for Black and brown birthing people, lower health care costs, expand the maternal health care workforce, and give pregnant people the ability to decide how and where to give birth with dignity,” Reproductive Equity Now President Rebecca Hart Holder said in a statement. “Today marks a big step in the fight to improve birthing outcomes, and we now look forward to working with the Senate to get this package across the finish line this session.”
CT Mirror | Supreme Court abortion pill ruling cheered in CT, but worries persist
“While today we breathe a sigh of relief, the court has left the door open to future litigation. And we know and recognize that anti-abortion extremists are not stopping their attacks anytime soon as they attempt to restrict and ban abortion in all 50 states,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director for Reproductive Equity Now, an organization advocating for reproductive rights in New England.
WCVB | 'No-brainer': Massachusetts leaders react to Supreme Court's mifepristone decision
“This is a really important day. We've had a moment to take a breath, but we should expect that more is coming down the pipeline,” said Rebecca Hart Holder of Reproductive Equity Now.
GBH | Mass. House votes to expand the definition of 'parent'
“Reproductive equity is not a reality in Massachusetts until every individual — and every LGBTQ+ family — is able to make decisions about whether and when to parent, and to parent with dignity,” Reproductive Equity Now President Rebecca Hart Holder said in a statement. “This bill will protect family formation in a post-Dobbs world, ensure that LGBTQ+ parents have the protections they need to start or build their families, and support children’s development and well-being over a lifetime.”
State House News Service | New awareness campaign targets “anti-abortion centers”
Reproductive Equity Now published a guidebook in May alleging that the centers offer medical disinformation, are located near legitimate abortion clinics to confuse patients and may lie to patients about how far along they are in their pregnancy.
MassLive | This is the big abortion rights issue you’re not hearing about | John L. Micek
“Anti-abortion centers are the foot soldiers of the anti-abortion movement,” Rebecca Hart Holder of the advocacy group Reproductive Equity Now, said. “These facilities are how anti-abortion extremists operate in protected states like ours.”
GBH | Mass. officials launch information campaign warning against anti-abortion centers
The DPH worked with the organization Reproductive Equity Now on the campaign. Reproductive Equity Now President Rebecca Hart Holder called anti-abortion centers “the foot soldiers of the anti-abortion movement.”
“These facilities are how anti-abortion extremists operate in protected states like ours,” she said.
Boston.com | State launches new awareness campaign against anti-abortion centers
The effort will take the form of advertisements on social media, billboards, radio programs, and transit, according to the Department of Public Health (DPH). It is a joint effort between DPH and the Reproductive Equity Now Foundation and is funded by a $1 million investment by the state legislature.
Audacy | Should you be stocking up on condoms?
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of the Reproductive Equity Now group said that the GOP blockade of contraception rights should alert voters of “what is at stake this November,” and she called for an end to the filibuster to protect reproductive health.
Common Dreams | Showing 'What's at Stake in November,' Senate GOP Blocks Right to Contraception Act
Reproductive Equity Now similarly warned on social media that "it's obvious from today's vote that anti-abortion extremists will not stop at banning abortion. They will attempt to block our access to birth control, attack IVF, eliminate LGBTQ+ healthcare, and decimate our reproductive autonomy. This is what's at stake in November."
BU Daily Free Press | Two years post-Roe: Greater Boston assesses local impact, looks ahead to November
Taylor St. Germain, communications director of Reproductive Equity Now, an organization that aims to provide equitable reproductive healthcare access for all people in New England, said she thinks voters will “rise up” and go to the polls “in droves to support abortion access” this November.
“Reproductive freedom is on the line in every single election up and down the ballot in every state across the country,” St. Germain said.
Boston Globe | Warren, Markey speak to threats facing national abortion access at Boston hearing
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now, said Massachusetts residents have called the abortion legal hotline in recent days with “tremendous confusion about what’s legal and what’s not legal.”
She said there have been more than 120 calls to the hotline during which the organization has helped providers navigate Telehealth abortion care.
“In the face of right wing extremists, we’re going to continue to step up,” she said.
Commonwealth Beacon | Warren, Markey say Mass. not safe in national fight over abortion
Warren also said that there is a possibility that if Donald Trump becomes president he could begin enforcing an 1873 anti-vice law that bans the mailing of equipment that could be used to administer an abortion. The Comstock Act has not been applied in the last 50 years but any president could theoretically enforce it, Warren said.
The law would have a significant impact on Massachusetts, Rose said, because it would prevent providers from mailing out abortion medications to their out-of-state patients, make it difficult for pharmaceutical companies to mail abortion medication to the state, and prohibit the delivery of healthcare equipment required by abortion providers.
“It is a zombie law from 1873 that should frankly stay dead,” said Rebecca Hart Holder, the head of Reproductive Equity Now. “It is shameful that the Republicans are trying to resurrect it. It really goes to show you that they will use any means necessary to ban abortions if [Trump] does that.”