News & Updates
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WBUR | How the Dobbs abortion decision is playing out in Massachusetts, one year later
“What we’re worried about is that someone travels to Massachusetts for care and their cell phone is tracked,” said Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now. The concern, she said, is that “an anti-choice actor in their state buys the data and uses it to prove that they had an abortion and tries to go after them for that abortion care.”
One Year After the Fall of Roe: Attacks on Reproductive Health Care Are Not Slowing Down, But Neither Are We
Today, Reproductive Equity Now is launching “Organizing for Equity: The Roe’d Show,” a series of organizing events throughout the state aiming to educate Massachusetts communities on how to access abortion care, how to identify (and avoid) dangerous anti-abortion centers, and ways people can help reenvision Roe and ensure reproductive equity for all.
Boston Globe | Crisis pregnancy center accused of failing to care for Worcester woman who was later forced to have emergency abortion
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now, said the case should serve as a warning that centers like Clearway “not only harm the health and safety of people seeking abortion, but also patients in need of basic pregnancy care.”
Worcester Telegram & Gazette | Lawsuit alleges Worcester antiabortion clinic's missed diagnosis threatened woman's life
A lawsuit filed Thursday in Superior Court by abortion-rights advocates on behalf of an anonymous Worcester woman claims the actions of Clearway Clinic, a pregnancy clinic that advises patients against abortion, led to a missed diagnosis of an ectopic pregnancy that threatened the woman's life.
MassLive | Pharmacists may be able to prescribe hormonal birth control if this Mass. bill passes
Rebecca Hart Holder, president of Reproductive Equity Now, said women often face unnecessary clinical visits or examination requirements which prevents individuals from being able to get birth control, especially with a healthcare system which is backed up due to staffing shortages or from the aftermath of the pandemic.
New Lawsuit Alleges Actions of 'Crisis Pregnancy Center' Resulted in Missed Diagnosis of a Life-Threatening Ectopic Pregnancy
“This case is further proof that anti-abortion centers like Clearway not only harm the health and safety of people seeking abortion, but also patients in need of basic pregnancy care,” said Rebecca Hart Holder, President of Reproductive Equity Now.
GBH | A year without Roe: What did the last year bring for abortion rights?
Reproductive Equity Now’s next focus: firming up location data privacy laws, as she detailed on Talking Politics last week.
Boston Globe | Here’s what’s in Healey’s proposed new sex ed framework
Such education frameworks can aid children in a country that has seen recent attacks on health care, said Taylor St. Germain, communications director at Reproductive Equity Now.
MassLive | Cell phone data privacy is the latest arena in abortion rights advocacy in Mass.
Reproductive advocacy groups including Reproductive Equity Now, the ACLU of Massachusetts, and Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts are working to support the “Location Shield Act,” also known as Bill H.357, that would ban the selling, leasing, trading or renting of cellphone location data.
Reproductive Equity Now Applauds Healey-Driscoll Administration Proposal to Update Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Sexual Health Education Framework
“As extremists continue to wage attacks on health care, trans kids, and the lessons we teach in the classroom, ensuring that Massachusetts leads with sexual health education that is medically accurate, LGBTQ+ inclusive, and age-appropriate has never been more important,” said Rebecca Hart Holder, President of Reproductive Equity Now.
Reproductive Equity Now: Julie Rikelman Embodies the Values We Need in Every Federal Court Appointment
Reproductive Equity Now today celebrated Julie Rikelman’s confirmation to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which covers Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island. Rikelman represented the Mississippi abortion clinic in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health case before the U.S. Supreme Court.
WBZ | Civil Rights, Reproductive Care Coalition Supporting Location Data Bill
A coalition of organizations including the ACLU of Massachusetts, the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts, and Reproductive Equity Now say that data brokers purchase movement and location data tracked by most cellphones and then resell it to anyone with a credit card. This includes anti-abortion groups and law enforcement agencies in states with bans on abortion services and gender-affirming care.
State House News Service | Abortion access advocates push for law protecting patient location data
A coalition of organizations including the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts, Reproductive Equity Now and the ACLU of Massachusetts pointed to Vice reporting in May that found one location data firm allowed users to see roughly where Planned Parenthood abortion clinic visitors live.
Reproductive advocacy groups launch campaign to bolster patient protections by banning sale of cellphone location data
Reproductive advocacy groups today launched “Your Location: It’s None of Their Business,” a campaign to ban the sale and trade of cellphone location information in Massachusetts.
Politico Playbook | Abortion providers harassed in Mass.
“We are absolutely concerned,” Rebecca Hart Holder, the president of Reproductive Equity Now, told Playbook. “No state is immune to extremists of all shapes and sizes, and so we have to be extremely vigilant in protecting providers.”
WWLP | REPORT: Out of pocket expenses for birth control significantly decreased in Massachusetts
Rebecca Hart Holder, President of Reproductive Equity Now telling 22News, “We know that getting co-pay free contraception not only lowers the rate of unintended pregnancy, but it also has really important side effects for gender equality. That includes increased participation in the workforce, better health outcomes in general, and lower rates of poverty.”
As Out-of-Pocket Costs Rise, Momentum Grows for Legislation to Eliminate Cost Sharing for Full Spectrum of Pregnancy Care
Yesterday, the Joint Committee on Financial Services held a hearing on several health insurance bills, including An Act Ensuring Access to Full Spectrum Pregnancy Care. Massachusetts residents testified to share their experiences navigating these exorbitant—and often unexpected—costs and what full spectrum pregnancy care would mean to them.
MassLive | Here’s how your Mass. state legislators would like to improve your health care
Representatives from Reproductive Equity Now and the League of Women Voters were among some of the groups to back the proposals, as did Kathryn Adamek, who paid $3,000 to give birth to her baby in 2020.
As The Fight for Reproductive Health Care Turns Local, Reproductive Equity Now Launches 2023 Town & City Champion Pledge
After the fall of Roe v. Wade, there has been a groundswell from cities and towns across the Commonwealth looking to take proactive steps to protect and expand reproductive health care, including abortion. Today, Reproductive Equity Now launched its 2023 Town & City Champion Pledge, a policy pledge for candidates for mayor, city councilor, town councilor, and select board to commit to using their elected office to protect every person’s right to access the full range of reproductive health options.