Overview: Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed four reproductive health-related bills, including Assembly Bill 50, which protects access to over-the-counter birth control for Medi-Cal recipients without a prescription, and Assembly Bill 260, which offers health care providers the option to prescribe abortion care medication anonymously. The bills also protect personal privacy and reproductive rights and shield attorneys assisting other states with access to reproductive care from State Bar discipline.
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California leaders continue to take steps to protect reproductive health access as Gov. Gavin Newsom signed several bills to ensure access to health care and to protect providers.
Sept. 30 marked the deadline for Newsom to sign or veto bills. Newsom signed four reproductive health-related bills, as the state continues to grapple with the fallout over abortion restrictions and the defunding of Planned Parenthood.
“California stands for a woman’s right to choose. I’m proud to sign these bills to protect access to essential health care and shield patients and health care providers in the face of amplified attacks on the fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” Newsom said in a statement.
One of the bills signed includes Assembly Bill 50: Equity in Birth Control Act, authored by Assemblymember Mia Bonta (D-Oakland). The bill protects Medi-Cal (California’s Medicaid program) recipients’ access to over-the-counter birth control without a prescription. By doing so, it eliminates barriers to accessing FDA-approved contraception. The law takes effect immediately.
“Accessing reproductive care should never depend on your income or type of insurance,” stated Bonta. “AB 50 ensures that Medi-Cal recipients can access over-the-counter birth control just like those with private insurance. As Chair of the Assembly Health Committee, I remain committed to expanding California’s leadership in reproductive justice, especially as a federal administration seeks to roll back reproductive rights and leave our daughters with fewer freedoms than their mothers had.”
In addition to signing AB 50, Newsom also signed AB 260, authored by Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D-Winters). AB 260 offers health care providers the option to prescribe abortion care medication to patients anonymously. This ensures that California-regulated health plans cover mifepristone, mediation used in medical abortions, regardless of FDA approval status. The bill also sets out to protect health care providers from criminal prosecution and other legal action for administering medication abortion drugs.
“California is again showing we won’t back down in the fight for reproductive freedom,” stated Aguiar-Curry in a press release. “By signing AB 260, Governor Newsom is ensuring that patients and providers in our state are protected from extremist attacks trying to block access to care. Abortion care is healthcare, and in California, we are committed to keeping it safe, legal, and accessible for everyone who needs it.”
Newsom also signed AB 45 by Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda) which protects personal privacy and reproductive rights by preventing reproductive health information being collected during research, from disclosure to out of state law enforcement requests. The fourth reproductive-related bill he signed was AB 1525 which helps to shield attorneys from State Bar discipline for assisting other states with access to reproductive care.