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The current restrictions on abortion in Georgia should remain in place, the state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. That means most abortions will continue to be banned once a doctor can detect fetal cardiac activity, typically about six weeks into a pregnancy and before many know they are pregnant, while the Fulton County Superior Court considers other arguments made by abortion advocates and providers about why the restrictions should be lifted. (Prabhu, 10/24)

Dana Peirce had no idea when she wrote a newspaper op-ed and testified in favor of abortion rights bills that her personal story would reverberate so powerfully that it would spur action to change Maine’s abortion laws. In 2019, Peirce had to travel to Colorado to terminate her pregnancy at 32 weeks because a gray area in Maine’s law meant she couldn’t get an abortion in her home state. Peirce said she knew that wasn’t right, and now it won’t happen to others. (Lawlor, 10/25)

Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) has tied Virginia Republicans’ hopes for winning legislative elections next month in part to the controversial strategy of embracing new limits on abortion access after 15 weeks, transforming his divided state into a national litmus test that is likely to shape the 2024 elections. (Schneider and Scherer, 10/25)

In recent months, abortion opponents in Texas have succeeded in passing a growing number of local ordinances to prevent people from helping women travel to have abortions in nearby states that still allow the procedure. On Monday, Lubbock County, a conservative hub of more than 300,000 residents near the border with New Mexico, became the largest county yet to enact such a ban. The county commissioners court, during a public meeting that drew occasionally impassioned testimony, voted to make it illegal for anyone to transport a pregnant woman through the county, or pay for her travel, for the purpose of seeking an abortion. (Goodman, 10/24)

Abortion advocates say opponents are increasingly matching their efforts with an assortment of legal and political challenges that have stalled or blocked their ability to introduce initiatives. To do so, anti-abortion lawmakers and others are using strategies from the playbook of conservatives who sought to restrict access to voting, even trying to change the rules for citizen-led initiatives. ProPublica found legislation or proposals introduced in at least four states in the last year that would undermine ballot initiatives adding abortion protections to state law. (Jaramillo, 10/24)

The first over-the-counter birth control pill available in the U.S. has been Food and Drug Administration-approved since July, but the military’s health insurance isn’t stocking or covering it, according to a letter several senators sent to the Defense Department on Monday. The lawmakers hope that the non-prescription pill will increase access to contraceptives for service members and their dependents. (Myers, 10/24)

At the same time the fall of Roe v. Wade has fueled an interest in expanding contraception access, OB-GYNs say they have seen a wave of patients quitting hormonal birth control for more "natural" options. The turn against effective forms of birth control raises concern about increased risks for unplanned pregnancies when abortion is being severely limited or banned across much of the U.S. (Reed, 10/25)

Aaron Willison had been thinking about getting a vasectomy done for over a decade. But after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, reversing nearly 50 years of abortion rights, he knew he couldn’t wait any longer. ... Months later, Willison’s partner was scrolling through TikTok when she stumbled upon a video about free vasectomies. Within a few days he was able to schedule an appointment with Planned Parenthood, which was providing free appointments for underinsured and uninsured people ahead of World Vasectomy Day, which falls on the third Friday in November each year. (Hays, 10/24)

Infertility has a new definition in the U.S. — one that could make a big difference to would-be parents who are single or LGBTQ+. Last week, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) issued an expanded description of the condition, stating that infertility involves “the need for medical intervention, including, but not limited to, the use of donor gametes or donor embryos in order to achieve a successful pregnancy either as an individual or with a partner.” (Merelli, 10/24)