Today, an extreme and unprecedented abortion bill, S.B. 8, went into effect in Texas. This law bans access to abortion at six weeks, before most people even know they are pregnant, and allows anyone in the U.S. to sue Texas abortion providers and those who assist patients in receiving an abortion. This legislation is clearly unconstitutional, as Roe v. Wade allows abortions up until viability. In the lead up to the law going into effect, it was challenged by multiple reproductive health groups in the hope that the Supreme Court would intervene before the September 1st date of effectiveness, yet no emergency action from the court was taken. Read More »


On July 29, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a spending bill free of the Hyde amendment, the Weldon amendment, and the D.C. ban on abortion coverage through Medicaid. Also included in the bill is increased support for the Title X Family Planning Program and the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program. Read More »


On July 28, 2021, the House passed the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOP) spending bill for the fiscal year 2022—a historic win for global sexual and reproductive health and rights. SFOPs Subcommittee Chairwoman Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA-13) championed the bill, which permanently repeals the Global Gag Rule, removes the colonialist and racist Helms amendment, protects funding for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and radically expands investments in reproductive health care and family planning around the world. Additionally, the spending bill would remove the Hyde amendment restrictions from the health insurance of Peace Corps volunteers. Read More »


World Population Day is observed each year on July 11. This year, World Population Day offers an opportunity to reflect on world population, and all that means to us. Read More »


Last Thursday, the House Appropriations Committee voted to advance the state and foreign operations appropriations bill for fiscal year 2022. The bill outlines bold advances to promote sexual and reproductive health and rights globally, including dramatic increases to bilateral and multilateral family planning programs and the removal of restrictions that make it more difficult for people around the world to access the reproductive health care services they seek. Read More »


Last week, the Biden-Harris administration released their proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2022. The administration took a huge step towards reproductive freedom by removing the Hyde amendment from their budget, the first administration to do so in decades. Read More »


The Population Institute applauds the reintroduction of the Reproductive Rights are Human Rights Act today in the House and Senate. The bill would ensure that the State Department reports on reproductive rights in a way that aligns with international human rights standards, and would prevent future administrations from eliminating this crucial reproductive rights reporting.  Read More »


President Biden today signed an executive order rescinding the global gag rule, which bars foreign NGOs that receive U.S. global health funding from counseling patients about abortion or referring them to abortion services. The order reverses a Trump-era policy that disrupted the provision of health care, including abortion services, to millions of people in developing countries. Read More »


Yesterday the Senate confirmed president Trump’s appointment of Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court, shifting the balance of the Court even further to the right and putting at risk our health and rights for years—perhaps decades—to come. Read More »


We are heartbroken by the loss of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Over her long career she has left an indelible legacy of making this country fairer and more equal for all. Read More »