Sacramento, CA…Governor Gavin Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom commemorated the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and highlighted California’s commitment to ensuring access to reproductive health care services in the face of national threats to reproductive rights:

“Today we commemorate the 49th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court case establishing a woman’s Constitutional right to a safe and legal abortion. Almost half a century later, we know without a doubt that limiting access to reproductive health care, including abortion, is a fundamental violation of individual liberty and freedom. The simple fact remains – America can’t achieve true equality if women do not have control over their own bodies.

“At a time when some across our nation are purposefully and deliberately choosing to attack women’s reproductive rights, California will continue to be a beacon of light – expanding access to abortion and reproductive care, and ensuring our state is a place where people receive critical reproductive health care services quickly and safely,” said Governor Newsom and First Partner Siebel Newsom.

The Governor and First Partner joined elected officials, activists and stakeholders in a virtual Planned Parenthood rally to commemorate the anniversary.

Governor Newsom’s California Blueprint continues the state’s leadership in advancing access to reproductive and sexual health care and protecting workers. The Plan removes the Medi-Cal requirements for in-person follow-up visits and ultrasounds if they are not medically necessary, making it easier to access reproductive care. The Blueprint offers scholarships and loan repayments to health care providers that commit to providing reproductive health care services, and funding for facilities to improve their IT systems and enhance security systems. The Blueprint includes funding to subsidize the cost of abortion care and to make human papillomavirus vaccines a covered benefit.

In his first year in office, Governor Newsom signed a Proclamation on Reproductive Freedom reaffirming California’s commitment to protecting women’s reproductive choices. The Governor has advanced investments to expand access to reproductive and sexual health care and signed multiple bills protecting reproductive freedom, including SB 374, SB 24 and AB 1264.

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