[[link removed]] Weekly Digest
Weekly Digest
Letter from an Editor | June 28, 2025
Dear John,
In a ruling Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a devastating blow to reproductive health clinics across the nation. In Medina v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic , a case out of South Carolina, the Court ruled that states have the authority to exclude reproductive health clinics from their Medicaid programs—even when those clinics provide essential care such as cancer screenings, birth control and STI testing. This is a ruling that will disproportionately impact low-income women, particularly those living in rural areas where health services are already limited.
“At a minimum, it will deprive Medicaid recipients in South Carolina of their only meaningful way of enforcing a right that Congress has expressly granted to them,” wrote Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor in their dissent. “And, more concretely, it will strip those South Carolinians—and countless other Medicaid recipients around the country—of a deeply personal freedom: the ‘ability to decide who treats us at our most vulnerable.'”
It’s a significant setback—one that’s particularly poignant this week, as we marked the third anniversary of the overturn of Roe v. Wade. And a substantial slate of decisions issued by the Court Friday dealt several more severe blows to the rule of law and our constitutional rights—though a silver lining this week was the Court’s decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act’s preventive-care mandate. The Senate Parliamentarian also thankfully disqualified a number of concerning provisions in the GOP megabill, including some restrictions on Medicaid and a ban on Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program funding for gender-affirming care . (Stay tuned to MsMagazine.com [[link removed]] next week for more on these rulings and the ongoing budget debates.)
Despite the constant barrage of right-wing attacks on abortion access, including total bans in some states, the number of abortions have continued to rise—by almost 20 percent in the first two full years since the Dobbs ruling overturned Roe . And it’s a number that’s likely an undercount. Ms . contributors Carole Joffe and David S. Cohen unpack why this might be the case, in a piece in Ms. this week; you can read it below.
But we also know that in the three years since Roe ’s overturn, women have died and suffered tragic health consequences due to the Court’s ruling, which rendered many unable to access medically necessary and life-saving health care. Although many cases have been reported, we don’t have an exact number of women who have died or suffered serious health impacts unnecessarily due to Dobbs —because those numbers aren’t tracked.
At the same time, recent polling from Gallup indicates that since 2022, support for abortion has surged among Democrats—particularly among women, though men also saw an increase. Support for abortion among Independents has also increased, with women once more leading the way. In the years since Dobbs , the gender gap between women’s support for abortion and men’s support has reached a historic high, suggesting an increasing potential for women’s votes to be decisive in the upcoming midterm elections.
In the wake of Dobbs , the U.S. as a whole has moved towards becoming more accepting of abortion. When will the patriarchs in the judiciary, Congress and state legislatures listen?
For equality,
[[link removed]]
Kathy Spillar
Executive Editor
P.S. — Next week, on the Fourth of July, we’re thrilled to be launching a new podcast series: Looking Back, Moving Forward. Ms . consulting editor Carmen Rios will trace the intertwined history of Ms . magazine and the feminist movement it has given voice to for over 50 years — and explore where the fight for gender equality must go next. Listen to the trailer now, and don’t forget to subscribe wherever you get podcasts!
This Week's Must-Reads from Ms.
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The Supreme Court Doesn’t Really Care About Originalism. ‘Medina v. Planned Parenthood’ Just Proved It. [[link removed]] Three Years After Dobbs, Abortion Numbers Have Surprisingly Gone Up [[link removed]]
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SCOTUS’ ‘Skrmetti’ Ruling: Without the ERA, Protections Against Sex Discrimination Remain Fragile [[link removed]] The Data We Don’t Collect Is Killing Women [[link removed]]
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Republicans’ Megabill Would Transform American Healthcare. So Why Is It Being Rushed, Without Public Debate? [[link removed]] ‘Looking Back, Moving Forward’: A New Podcast From Ms. Traces Feminist History to Light the Path Ahead [[link removed]]
[link removed] [[link removed]] Listen to the latest podcast from Ms. Studios! Speaking Freely: A First Amendment Podcast with Stephen Rohde is out now on Apple Podcasts [[link removed]] + Spotify [[link removed]] .
Welcome to Speaking Freely: a First Amendment Podcast with Stephen Rohde. In this new series, First Amendment expert Stephen Rohde, who has litigated and written about freedom of expression for decades, will explore some of the most controversial free speech and free press cases decided by the U.S. Supreme Court—looking at hot-button issues like hate speech, defamation, incitement, social media, obscenity, flag burning, espionage, and academic freedom.
We hope you'll listen, subscribe, rate and review today!
U.S. democracy is at a dangerous inflection point—from the demise of abortion rights, to a lack of pay equity and parental leave, to skyrocketing maternal mortality, and attacks on trans health. Left unchecked, these crises will lead to wider gaps in political participation and representation. For over 50 years, Ms . has been forging feminist journalism—reporting, rebelling and truth-telling from the front-lines, championing the Equal Rights Amendment, and centering the stories of those most impacted. With all that’s at stake for equality, we are redoubling our commitment for the next 50 years. In turn, we need your help, Support Ms. today with a donation—any amount that is meaningful to you [[link removed]] . We are grateful for your loyalty and ferocity .
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