Abortion Rights

Abortion rights are under attack. Political extremists and far-right activists are aiming to dismantle abortion rights across the country and deny equitable, safe access to abortion. People nationwide have felt the reverberating effects of political extremism through abortion bans and restrictive abortion laws. To ensure that every woman has the right to critical health care services, it is necessary to restore the fundamental right to abortion and advance new abortion laws that advance access to care.

The Center for American Progress aims to develop policy and solutions to ensure that abortion access is protected by state and federal law and to preserve the fundamental rights and well-being of all Americans. U.S. health care should include abortion care. The United States must proactively address the consequences of abortion bans and build up a care infrastructure that is supportive of abortion rights through policy changes at the state and federal levels. This includes: eliminating the Hyde amendment to ensure that abortion is affordable for all people; reversing the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Care Organization decision; codifying the right to abortion into law; ensuring a fair-minded and balanced judiciary; and safeguarding access to medication abortion. The country also needs to simultaneously improve access to comprehensive health care overall, including birth control, maternity care, and all preventive services.

Photo shows a crowd of people holding signs that read
Activists hold abortion rights signs at a rally in Washington, D.C., April 2023. (Getty/Probal Rashid/LightRocket)

Featured Content

1 Year Without Roe
Personal Story Photo shows a closeup of a woman's hands, with one clasped around the other

1 Year Without Roe

Doctors, doulas, and nurse practitioners detail their experiences since the overturn of Roe v. Wade and their fears in the rapidly evolving legal landscape of abortion care.


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1 Year Without Roe Personal Story
Photo shows a closeup of a woman's hands, with one clasped around the other

1 Year Without Roe

Doctors, doulas, and nurse practitioners detail their experiences since the overturn of Roe v. Wade and their fears in the rapidly evolving legal landscape of abortion care.

D.C. Abortion Doula Fills Gaps in Support Systems Post-Roe Personal Story
Photo shows a hand holding a pink sign that reads

D.C. Abortion Doula Fills Gaps in Support Systems Post-Roe

An abortion doula in Washington, D.C., describes how restrictions on abortion and medication abortions hurt the marginalized communities they serve.

People Determine the Reach of the Supreme Court In the News

People Determine the Reach of the Supreme Court

Maggie Jo Buchanan argues that a year after the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the American people have stepped up to protect abortion rights.

DC Journal

Maggie Jo Buchanan

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