NARAL Celebrates Oregon Legislature’s Action to Affirm Legal Right to Abortion Under Trump

SALEM, Ore. – Today, the Oregon legislature passed the historic Reproductive Health Equity Act, HB 3391, affirming the legal right to abortion for the first time in state history. This bill also protects and expands insurance coverage for a broad range of reproductive health services, including contraception, abortion and postpartum care, regardless of income, citizenship status, type of insurance or gender marker.

With passage of this bill, Oregon becomes the second state to codify the legal right to abortion under the Trump administration.  This statutory protection would protect access to safe abortion even if Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Said Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America: “While Donald Trump and anti-choice Republicans take aim at women’s most basic freedoms in Congress and through the courts, NARAL members in states across the country are pursuing legislation to protect women from attacks at the federal level. Our members in Oregon know that without abortion access, women cannot be truly equal partners in society. That’s why they’ve been rallying in support of this historic legislation. I am thrilled that their hard work has paid off to the benefit of countless Oregonians.”

This bill was developed over the course of two years by the Pro-Choice Coalition of Oregon, which is made up of a broad range of organizations focused on reproductive rights as well as racial, economic and gender justice. As a member of the coalition’s steering committee, Grayson Dempsey, Executive Director of NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon, applauded Oregon legislators for their commitment to reproductive rights and their willingness to stand up to the attacks on women and healthcare by Donald Trump and anti-choice Republicans in Congress. She states, “Oregon continues to be a national leader in expanding reproductive health equity for all people. I am proud of our legislature for protecting the legal right to abortion in our state and for ensuring that all Oregonians have the coverage they need to access essential reproductive healthcare services.”

Effective upon passage, the Reproductive Health Equity Act will:

• Safeguard the right to abortion if Roe v. Wade were overturned.
• Protect no-cost coverage for preventive reproductive health care for every Oregonian with commercial health insurance if the Affordable Care Act were overturned.
• Expand post-partum care to about 48,000 Oregonians of reproductive age who have coverage for labor and delivery that drops immediately after birth.
• Make safe, legal abortion more affordable and accessible for about 43,000 Oregon women of reproductive age who have high-deductible policies.
• Help more than 18,600 Oregon women of reproductive age who are forced to pay out-of-pocket costs for preventive health services, including contraception.
• Remove procedural barriers that hinder access to prenatal care and lifesaving cancer screenings for transgender and gender-nonconforming Oregonians.

NARAL Pro-Choice America, NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon, and their network of state affiliates are dedicated to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom for all Americans. NARAL works to guarantee that every woman has the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion. In recognition of its work defending our constitutional right to choose, Fortune Magazine described NARAL as “one of the top 10 advocacy groups in America.”

The Pro-Choice Coalition of Oregon is a diverse, statewide coalition that consists of American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon, Family Forward Oregon, NARAL Pro-Choice Oregon, Oregon Latino Health Coalition, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon and Western States Center.