Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a law on Tuesday making it cheaper for women on private insurance plans to abort their unborn babies.
“SB 245 prohibits health plans and insurers from imposing a co-pay, deductible, or other cost-sharing requirement for abortion and abortion-related services,” the governor’s office said in a press release.
“The legislation also prohibits health plans and insurers from imposing utilization management practices on covered abortion and abortion-related services,” the press release continued. “California is one of six states that require health insurance plans to cover abortion services, but out-of-pocket costs for patients can exceed a thousand dollars.”
Though California already mandates that health insurance companies cover abortions, insurers charge for co-pays and deductibles — resulting in an average of $543 for a woman to use medication abortion to abort her baby or $887 for a woman to abort her baby surgically, ABC reports.
“As states across the country attempt to move us backwards by restricting fundamental reproductive rights, California continues to protect and advance reproductive freedom for all,” Newsom said of the Abortion Accessibility Act, introduced by Democratic California state Sen. Lena A. Gonzalez.
“With this legislation, we’ll help ensure equitable, affordable access to abortion services so that out-of-pocket costs don’t stand in the way of receiving care,” he added.
The law comes as the Supreme Court hears Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a Supreme Court case that has the potential to overturn the landmark abortion decision, Roe v. Wade.
Should Roe be overturned, at least 26 states will outright ban abortions or enact laws that heavily restrict abortions, according to the pro-abortion research and policy organization, the Guttmacher Institute.
“We’re looking at 26 states that will introduce some sort of ban and restriction on abortion, so you have the other half of the country that will need to prepare for how we take care of those patients,” said Jodi Hicks, CEO and President of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California, according to NBC News. “We’re all imagining and trying to prepare correctly for what that impact will be.”
Newsom’s wife said in a statement that California has “taken action to improve access to reproductive care by removing financial barriers to this essential health care.”
“In the Golden State, we value women and recognize all they shoulder in their dual roles as caregivers and breadwinners,” said Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the governor’s “First Partner.”
“California will continue to lead by example and ensure all women and pregnant people have autonomy over their bodies and the ability to control their own destinies,” she added.
Newsom also announced in October that California would be participating in the California Future of Abortion Council in efforts to work with pro-abortion activists and lawmakers to “advance the state’s reproductive freedom leadership,” the governor’s office said in a press release.