Biden issues second executive order to protect abortion access

President Biden on Wednesday issued an executive order to protect people’s ability to travel out of state to access abortion.

The big picture: This is the second executive order the president has issued to preserve access to abortion since the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

Current Status: Biden signed the executive order during the first meeting of the White House Task Force on Reproductive Health, which is focused on coordinating the federal government’s reproductive health efforts.

Details: The executive order directs the Department of Health and Human Services to “consider actions to improve access” to reproductive health services, including through Medicaid, for patients who travel out of state.

• Biden also asked HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra to consider “all appropriate actions” to ensure that health care providers comply with federal nondiscrimination laws so that people can “get the medical care they need without delay.”
• Becerra also needs to “evaluate and improve research, data collection and data analysis efforts” on maternal health.

What he’s saying: Biden said this executive order would respond to “the health care crisis that has developed since the Supreme Court overturned Roe and is facing women across America.”

• The order will “help preserve access to health care, including the right to choose and to use contraception. [It] promotes the safety and security of clinics, patients and providers and protects patient privacy and access to accurate information.
• “I believe Roe got it right. This has been the law for nearly 50 years. And I have committed to the American people that we are doing everything in our power to protect access to health care, including the right to choose that women had in Roe v. Wade, which was gutted by this last court.”

Reduction: Although the Biden administration has taken several steps to respond to the Supreme Court’s decision, the executive branch’s role when it comes to protecting abortion care is limited without action by Congress.

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