The Center for Reproductive Rights will return to the United States Supreme Court next term to defend the right to abortion, a right recognized in the landmark 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade. On May 17, the Court granted Mississippi's request to review our case that challenges the state's law banning abortion after 15 weeks.

The fundamental right to make decisions about a person's body, life, and future is essential to the pursuit of reproductive, racial and economic justice, and the Center will continue fighting until that right is recognized throughout the world.

Visit the World Abortion Laws Map for updates on the status of legal abortion across the globe. Then, see the latest news from our work around the world below.

Europe

Report highlights barriers to maternal health care faced by undocumented migrants in the European Union

Currently, 16 European Union member states do not provide undocumented migrant women with equal access to affordable maternal health care during pregnancy. This lack of access to maternal health care puts pregnant people's health and lives at risk—and EU member states must take steps to address and remove these harmful barriers that prevent undocumented migrants from accessing care. The Center's recent report, "Perilous Pregnancies," highlights recommendations for how European Union member states can uphold the human rights of undocumented migrants across the region.

Bill to decriminalize abortion presented in Malta

A bill to decriminalize abortion was just introduced in Malta, the only European Union country to maintain a total abortion ban. Abortion is currently prohibited in all circumstances in Malta; it's subject to up to three years imprisonment for those procuring an abortion or helping someone to do so, and four years imprisonment for doctors who perform abortions. If adopted, this draft legislation would be a significant step towards removing criminal penalties for abortion and paving the way for Maltese women to access vital care in their own country.

Global Human Rights

Center supports new bill that would require future State Department reporting on reproductive rights

Each year, the U.S. Department of State submits Country Reports on Human Rights Practices that document the human rights situation in nearly 150 countries around the world. After the Trump administration eliminated the reproductive rights section of these reports—a blatant rejection of the basic principle that reproductive rights are human rights—new legislation would mandate it moving forward. The Center is proud to support the Reproductive Rights are Human Rights Act, recently introduced in Congress, which would require reporting on maternal deaths, reproductive coercion, and access to abortion, contraception and maternity care, and other reproductive rights.

"This draft bill is a historic first step towards reforming one of the few remaining abortion bans in Europe. If adopted, the bill would remove harmful criminal penalties and could pave the way to allow women in Malta access to abortion care in their own country."

—Katrine Thomasen
Senior Legal Adviser for Europe on Malta's steps toward decriminalizing abortion