Abortion care is only one part of the comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care that patients need compassionate and timely access to without barriers. We know that when abortion care is restricted, people are unable to get the miscarriage management they need, providers are slower to intervene in medical emergencies because of legal confusion caused by bans, and the providers and clinics that provide contraceptive care, gender-affirming care, STI treatment and screening, and cancer screenings are forced to close.
As physicians, we know that it is more important now than ever to advocate for a world where everyone has access to the care they need to live full, healthy, autonomous lives. Physicians for Reproductive Health is practiced in centering the needs of patients accessing this life-saving health care every day. We know that when we center solutions that listen to the needs of young people, people of color, queer people, immigrants, and people living within systemic poverty, everyone benefits.
In the midst of increased threat to the full spectrum of reproductive health care, we are proud to provide care that honors patients’ identities, beliefs, and dreams.
The Outcomes We Seek
Gender-Affirming Care Without Barriers Ensuring transgender, non-binary, and gender diverse people of all ages have access to life-saving care.
Healthy Pregnant People Promoting solutions at clinical and political levels to ensure that people who choose to get pregnant stay safe and healthy.
Comprehensive Contraceptive Access Expanding and protecting access to the birth control method right for each patient’s unique goals.
The numbers are on our side. People deserve access to the care they need, no matter their identity or stage in life.
39.4%
Of transgender youth live in states that have passed bans on gender-affirming care.
22
Maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births in the United States.
82%
Of women identifying people of reproductive age say they used a form of contraception in the past year.
What we’re doing about it
Transgender and nonbinary people are at the center of political attacks on the state and federal level merely for being who they are. As physicians, we know that everyone, no matter their gender identity, is deserving of compassionate, respectful health care. Gender-affirming care is safe, effective, and life-saving for patients of all ages. When we sit with patients who have been denied the care they need, we know it is not only devastating; it is dangerous. The fight for trans liberation is inherent to the fight for reproductive justice. In the media, in statehouses, and in the courts, we are committed to increasing access to the care transgender and nonbinary patients need.
We are navigating a devastating and preventable maternal mortality crisis. When doctors are afraid to intervene in medical emergencies during pregnancy because of the criminal threat of abortion bans, patients don’t theoretically suffer, they die. As physicians, we know how critical it is for pregnant patients to have access to timely care. Pregnancy is a medical complex state, and it is critical that health care providers can intervene as needed if a complication arises. We speak out in our professional institutions, in meetings with policymakers, and in our communities for the solutions we know keep pregnant people alive: ones that center their knowledge of their own body, that fight back against the historical harms of racism in medicine, and that increase access to compassionate providers in our communities.
Everyone deserves access to the resources they need to support their decisions about if and when they want to start a family. As health care providers, we know that everyone is deserving of the information necessary in order to decide what contraception is in alignment with their goals and values. No matter someone’s age or source of insurance, it is critical that people can get birth control and emergency contraception in their communities. We center the historic harms that the medical profession has imparted on communities of color in the testing and prescribing of contraception, often without consent. We are committed to healing this distrust between communities and health care providers by trusting patients to know what contraceptive method is best for their lives, if any.
“Gender-affirming care is lifesaving. If we don’t stay resolute, we risk enabling policies designed to make us feel confused, overwhelmed, and small.”
