
4 Things to Know About the FDA’s Move to Expand Access to Abortion Pills
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s new guidance on medication abortion has the potential to increase access to care, though challenges remain.
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Maggie Jo Buchanan is the senior director of the Women’s Initiative at American Progress, where she leads interdisciplinary work on women’s economic security, health, and leadership.
Before her current role, Buchanan was the director of Courts and Legal Policy at American Progress, publishing widely cited reports on topics such as professional diversity on the federal bench and U.S. Supreme Court term limits. In addition, she previously served as an associate director for the Women’s Initiative, focused on women’s health and reproductive rights.
In addition to her work at American Progress, Buchanan has led policy initiatives at organizations such as Young Invincibles and NARAL Pro-Choice America. She also served as a senior legislative assistant to Rep. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX). In that role, she managed significant portions of the congressman’s Ways and Means portfolio, including his work on health care, worker and family supports, and Social Security matters. Buchanan also has significant experience in the states, working in Texas on issues that include maternal health, reproductive rights, and the unique challenges facing student-parents.
Buchanan’s work has received extensive news coverage in NPR, PBS NewsHour, Bloomberg, The Guardian, the Houston Chronicle, The Texas Tribune, The Washington Post, Politico, and more. She earned her law degree from the University of Texas School of Law and her bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s new guidance on medication abortion has the potential to increase access to care, though challenges remain.
Pregnancy carries risks, including death. Without abortion access, more women will die.
Graham’s proposed national ban would prohibit abortion after 15 weeks nationwide, with only very narrow exceptions—while still allowing states to ban abortion even more strictly.
As some states seek to criminalize abortion within their borders, attorneys general can take many actions to ensure access to abortion care in at least some states.
To ensure access to care, it is critical to protect patient privacy whenever possible.
While it is critical that Congress works to codify the promise of Roe v. Wade and ensure equitable access to abortion care, the federal government must take what steps it can now under the scope of the Hyde Amendment to increase access to care and protect patients.
By rejecting medical reality, politicians are demonstrating their extreme cruelty.
Understanding how the key social determinants of health—including housing, employment, and education—affect perinatal health is critical to ensuring that federal policies support healthy babies and families.
Americans in states with regressive anti-abortion laws now have fewer human rights protections than those in countries criticized for their records on women’s rights.
The right to abortion has been denied—but the fight for basic freedom and dignity continues.
American voters overwhelmingly want to keep the constitutional right to abortion in Roe v. Wade and strongly support legal access to early abortion medication for all women.
Everyone deserves access to abortion, but care is being restricted on all fronts.