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State abortion bans, federal prosecution threats against providers, mifepristone litigation, and the post-Dobbs legal landscape
A 28-year-old Illinois woman has filed a lawsuit against Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Hoffman Estates, alleging the Catholic-affiliated facility denied her a standard medication for an ectopic pregnancy, leading to a ruptured…
4 MIN READTaylor Parker, the Texas woman sentenced to death for killing her pregnant friend Reagan Simmons-Hancock in 2020 and cutting the unborn baby from her womb, remains on death row after the U.S. Supreme Court in May declined to review her…
4 MIN READA Colorado appeals court has ordered new trials for two paramedics convicted of homicide in the 2019 death of Elijah McClain, the Black man who was pinned down by police and injected with a fatal dose of ketamine. The ruling, issued…
4 MIN READAn advocacy group has filed suit challenging a Veterans Affairs rule that reinstates near-ban abortion limits for veterans and certain family members who rely on VA healthcare, the group said. The lawsuit, filed Thursday, seeks to overturn…
3 MIN READA veterans advocacy group filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration on May 21, 2026, seeking to overturn a Department of Veterans Affairs rule that reinstates a near-total ban on abortion services for veterans and their…
4 MIN READPlanned Parenthood will launch an advance provision program that allows people in Washington and Hawaii to get abortion pills mifepristone and misoprostol ahead of an anticipated pregnancy. The initiative, shared exclusively with NPR, will…
3 MIN READPatience Rousseau will receive $100,000 from Nevada following a settlement approved by the Board of Examiners on Feb. 18. The payment concludes an eight-year legal battle after Rousseau became the only person ever charged and convicted…
3 MIN READThe Supreme Court on Thursday preserved nationwide access to mifepristone, the drug used in the most common method of abortion, granting emergency requests from the medication's manufacturers and blocking a lower-court ruling that would…
3 MIN READConservative state lawmakers across the country are pushing to ban or severely restrict abortion pills, a response to a new survey indicating that for the first time, more women in states with near-total bans obtained the pills through…
5 MIN READIn a ruling on Thursday, the Supreme Court preserved access to mifepristone, the drug used in the most common method of abortion, rejecting lower-court restrictions while a lawsuit continues. The court’s order allows patients to obtain the…
3 MIN READIn the first stretch of 2026 state legislative sessions, conservative-governed states have continued expanding restrictions targeting abortion pills, including new rules aimed at mailing and telehealth prescribing. A survey released…
3 MIN READBack-to-back court rulings on abortion pill access are bringing the issue back into focus ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, with control of Congress in the second half of President Donald Trump’s term at stake, the Associated Press…
3 MIN READThe Supreme Court issued an administrative stay on Monday that restores the ability to obtain the abortion pill mifepristone through telehealth, mail-order and pharmacies without an in-person doctor visit, temporarily blocking a lower…
3 MIN READThe Supreme Court, in an order by Justice Samuel Alito, on Monday temporarily extended women’s access to the abortion pill mifepristone, preventing restrictions imposed by a federal appeals court from taking effect until at least Thursday.…
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The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday issued an order leaving women’s access to mifepristone in place while the justices consider whether restrictions on the drug can take effect. Justice Samuel Alito’s order blocks a federal appeals court…
3 MIN READThe U.S. Supreme Court on Monday restored broad access to the abortion pill mifepristone, blocking a lower-court ruling that threatened to disrupt one of the main ways abortions are provided in the country. The court’s order temporarily…
3 MIN READThe U.S. Supreme Court is being asked to block an appellate ruling that cut off mail-order access to the abortion pill mifepristone, according to a filing by the drugmakers. Danco Laboratories and GenBioPro asked the high court on Saturday…
3 MIN READThe U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday sided unanimously with a faith-based pregnancy center that raised First Amendment concerns about a New Jersey investigation into whether it misled people to discourage abortions. The procedural ruling…
3 MIN READA federal appeals court on Friday blocked the mailing of prescriptions for the abortion pill mifepristone, ruling that the drug must be dispensed only in person at clinics and not through telehealth or the mail. The unanimous decision by a…
5 MIN READPresident Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FDA, Dr. Marty Makary, was confirmed by the Senate late Tuesday, renewing debate over the abortion pill mifepristone and whether new federal rules could restrict access. In Senate health committee…
4 MIN READThe U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with an anti-abortion pregnancy center that challenged a New Jersey investigation, ruling that the group can seek review in federal court over a state subpoena. The unanimous decision is a…
3 MIN READA Wyoming judge has blocked a state law that bans most abortions after embryonic cardiac activity can be detected while a lawsuit challenging the measure moves ahead. Natrona County District Judge Dan Forgey issued a temporary restraining…
3 MIN READA Pennsylvania appellate court on Monday struck down a four-decade-old law banning the use of state Medicaid funds for abortions, ruling that the state constitution guarantees a right to reproductive autonomy. The seven-judge Commonwealth…
4 MIN READA California bill advancing through the state Legislature would require medical providers and affiliated businesses to notify the state attorney general before complying with federal subpoenas seeking records related to abortion,…
4 MIN READThe Trump administration fired four U.S. Justice Department prosecutors involved in cases targeting anti-abortion activists, the Justice Department said on Tuesday. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the dismissals were meant to…
3 MIN READU.S. abortion opponents are pressing President Donald Trump’s Food and Drug Administration to move faster on restrictions for mifepristone, a drug they say is undermining state abortion bans. A judge in a lawsuit brought by Louisiana’s…
3 MIN READA federal judge in Louisiana declined on Tuesday to halt the ability to fill prescriptions for the abortion pill mifepristone through the mail across the U.S. for now, setting aside Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill’s bid to pause FDA…
3 MIN READAnti-abortion groups are pressing the Trump administration’s FDA to move faster on restricting mifepristone, arguing that online telehealth prescribing undermines state abortion bans. A mixed ruling in a lawsuit brought by Louisiana’s…
3 MIN READMississippi lawmakers have sent a bill to Republican Gov. Tate Reeves that would criminalize the distribution of abortion-inducing medication in the state, punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The legislation adds restrictions on…
3 MIN READA Georgia judge on Monday set a $1 bond for a murder charge faced by Alexia Moore, who is accused by police of taking pills to induce an illegal abortion. Superior Court Judge Steven Blackerby said during the bond hearing the charge was…
4 MIN READSuperior Court Judge Steven Blackerby set a $1 bond for the murder charge against Alexia Moore, a 31‑year‑old Georgia woman accused of using pills to induce an illegal abortion. The judge also ordered $1,000 bonds for two separate drug…
3 MIN READSAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Police in Georgia have charged Alexia Moore, 31, with murder after she allegedly took pills to induce an illegal abortion, according to an arrest warrant. Prosecutors have not yet decided whether to pursue the murder…
3 MIN READThe Trump administration said it has launched investigations into 13 states that require state-regulated health insurance plans to cover abortion. The probes focus on compliance with a federal spending-law provision known as the Weldon…
3 MIN READWyoming Gov. Mark Gordon signed a law Monday that bans most abortions after embryonic “cardiac activity” can be detected, generally at about six weeks’ gestation. In a letter to lawmakers, Gordon said he has misgivings about the measure…
3 MIN READTexas Tech University Health Sciences Center canceled a scheduled Jan. 26 talk by an OB-GYN author focused on medical and ethical considerations surrounding later-pregnancy abortions, university officials said. The cancellation followed…
3 MIN READPuerto Rico Gov. Jenniffer González signed a bill on Feb. 12 that amends the territory’s penal code to recognize a fetus as a human being, drawing warnings from doctors and civil-rights groups about criminal-law and health-care…
3 MIN READPhoenix-area Maricopa Superior Court Judge Greg Como ruled Friday that Arizona must stop enforcing older abortion restrictions that predate and conflict with a 2024 voter-approved constitutional amendment guaranteeing abortion rights. Como…
3 MIN READA man filed a lawsuit in Texas accusing a California doctor of violating the state’s anti-abortion law by providing abortion medication. The case tests a Texas legal model that allows private citizens to sue abortion providers for mailing…
3 MIN READPlanned Parenthood has moved to voluntarily drop its legal challenge to Trump administration Medicaid cuts that it said would end funding for abortion providers across the U.S. The organization said it took the step after a federal appeals court ruling in December allowed the administration to keep withholding the Medicaid payments, and as a separate challenge by mostly Democratic states continues.
The Trump administration said it will no longer allow human fetal tissue derived from abortions to be used in research funded by the National Institutes of Health. The policy announced Thursday expands restrictions that were imposed during the administration’s first term and later lifted by President Joe Biden’s administration.
The Trump administration announced Thursday that the National Institutes of Health will no longer fund research using human fetal tissue derived from abortions. The policy, long sought by anti-abortion groups, expands restrictions the administration imposed during its first term. Under the new rules, all NIH-funded research will be barred from using fetal tissue, though research using cell lines previously created from fetal cells will continue.
Planned Parenthood of Michigan said it will begin offering vasectomies for patients in Grand Rapids, as abortion access has narrowed nationwide after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. The nonprofit plans to provide the minor procedure for adults 21 and older at its Irwin/Martin health center, with additional locations expected to come online during the year.
Planned Parenthood of Michigan announced it will offer vasectomy services at its Grand Rapids health center, responding to increased demand for permanent birth control alternatives following the Supreme Court's 2022 decision restricting abortion rights. The procedure will cost $800 without insurance and be available to adults 21 and older. The organization says it ceased offering vasectomies about a decade ago but is resuming services due to the surge in patient interest.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday he was blocking Louisiana's attempt to extradite a San Francisco Bay Area physician accused of mailing abortion pills, citing a 2022 executive order that bars state agencies under his administration from cooperating with other states' prosecutions of abortion providers. Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, a Republican, had sent extradition paperwork the day before seeking to bring the doctor "to justice." Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill identified the physician as Remy Coeytaux and said he faced a criminal charge of abortion by means of abortion-inducing drugs, with a potential sentence of up to 50 years in prison if convicted.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said he will block Louisiana’s attempt to extradite a Bay Area doctor accused of mailing abortion pills. Newsom said the move would violate an executive order he signed in 2022 barring California agencies from helping other states prosecute abortion providers.
An Alabama judge ordered a new trial for a woman sentenced to 18 years in prison after a stillbirth, citing new evidence presented by her attorneys. Lee County Circuit Judge Jeffrey Tickal vacated Brooke Shoemaker’s 2020 conviction, court records say, and said the outcome likely would have differed had jurors heard the evidence about an infection.
