Washington, DC — As Medicaid faces the most drastic cuts in its history, the National Health Law Program (NHeLP) today announced the launch of its “Medicaid Repro Roadmap,” a comprehensive initiative to strengthen and expand Medicaid coverage of abortion, contraception, and pregnancy care at the state and federal levels.
Rooted in a commitment to fairness, access, and dignity, the initiative will produce actionable policy recommendations to improve coverage in the immediate term while advancing a long-term vision for a more just and equitable health care system.
More than 73 million people rely on Medicaid for their health care. Medicaid is the largest public payer of family planning services and the single largest payer of births in the country. Yet access to abortion remains severely restricted under federal law due to the Hyde Amendment, which generally prohibits federal funding for abortion coverage. In many states, additional abortion bans and restrictions further limit access.
“Reproductive health care is health care. It should not depend on your income, your zip code, or political ideology,” said Fabiola De Liban, Senior Director of Sexual and Reproductive Health at NHeLP. “‘Medicaid Repro Roadmap’ is about fairness and the human right to health care. It is about making sure people who rely on Medicaid have meaningful access to the full range of reproductive health services, including abortion, contraception, and pregnancy care. We are bringing together research, lived experience, and policy expertise to offer concrete solutions that decision makers can act on now.”
For more than 55 years, NHeLP has protected and advanced the health rights of low-income and underserved people. The “Medicaid Repro Roadmap” builds on that legacy by developing recommendations that can be advanced through legislation or administrative action under the current Medicaid legal landscape. At the same time, the project will articulate broader reforms that would strengthen reproductive health coverage in a reimagined health care system.
“At its core, this project reflects our belief that everyone deserves access to high-quality, equitable health care,” said Jennifer Cannistra, Executive Director of NHeLP. “Medicaid is a lifeline for millions of families. At a time when the program is under threat, we cannot retreat. We must move forward with a clear vision that centers fairness, dignity, and health equity. ‘Medicaid Repro Roadmap’ offers that vision.”
For more information about the “Medicaid Repro Roadmap”, visit www.healthlaw.org/medicaid-repro-roadmap/.
