Women's Health Policy

ABORTION IN THE U.S.

KFF infographic explaining who regulates mifepristone, showing four entities and their roles: the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves and regulates medications for safety and effectiveness; state legislatures pass laws that can restrict or protect access; courts rule on legal cases affecting regulation; and Congress can pass federal legislation influencing regulation.

Louisiana v. FDA: Access to Mifepristone Back at the Supreme Court

Louisiana sued the FDA in October 2025, claiming the FDA’s 2023 regulatory change eliminating the requirement that mifepristone be dispensed in-person—allowing it to be mailed or dispensed at retail pharmacies—harm the state's ability to enforce its abortion ban. This brief reviews the Louisiana v. FDA case and provides an overview of the other pending litigation involving mifepristone, as well as the mounting tension between states seeking to protect abortion and those banning the provision of abortion.

CONTRACEPTIve care IN THE U.S.

An Update on Medicaid, Title X and Planned Parenthood

This brief provides an update on Planned Parenthood clinic closures and participation in the Title X program amid substantial policy changes resulting in funding reductions. These changes include the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the withholding of federal Title X funding to Planned Parenthood clinics.

SELECTED RESOURCES

Over-the-Counter Oral Contraceptive Pills

In July 2023, the FDA approved Opill, the first daily oral contraceptive pill to become available over the counter (OTC) without a doctor’s prescription. This issue brief provides an overview of OTC oral contraceptives and laws and policies related to insurance coverage.

featured

A promotional image for the the KFF Health Policy 101 Issues in Women’s Health chapter

Health Policy Issues in Women’s Health

Examine the core health coverage and access issues —shaped by federal and state policies—that affect women’s health today, including health coverage and costs, reproductive health services, maternal health, mental health, and intimate partner violence.

State Profiles for Women’s Health

Explore the latest national and state-specific data and policies on women’s health. Topics include health status, insurance and Medicaid coverage, use of preventive services, sexual health, maternal and infant health, and abortion policies. Many indicators provide state-level information for women of different racial and ethnic groups.

The essentials
  • Women’s Health Insurance Coverage

    This factsheet reviews major sources of coverage for women residing in the U.S., discusses the ACA's impact on coverage, and the coverage challenges that many women continue to face.
  • Medicaid Coverage for Women

    This data note presents key data points describing the current state of the Medicaid program as it affects women, including eligibility, reproductive health, chronic conditions, and more.
  • Dobbs: What are the Implications for Racial Disparities?

    This analysis examines the implications of the Dobbs decision and state restrictions on abortion coverage for racial disparities in access to care and health outcomes.
  • State Health Facts: Women's Health Indicators

    Information on women’s health status, utilization of services, health insurance coverage, family planning and childbirth, and abortion statistics and policies.
  • Key Facts on Abortion in the United States

    This report answers some key questions about abortion in the United States and presents data collected before the overturn of Roe v. Wade.

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191 - 200 of 874 Results

  • Legal Analysis of the Supreme Court Ruling on Hobby Lobby

    Feature

    This chart looks at the U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Hobby Lobby case involving the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) contraceptive coverage requirement. It examines how the Court answered four key questions in the case.

  • Visualizing Health Policy: Barriers to Care Experienced by Women in the United States 

    News Release

    This Visualizing Health Policy infographic looks at barriers to care experienced by women in the United States. Women incur greater health care costs than men, particularly during the reproductive years. Despite a lower uninsured rate than men (11% vs 14%), women are more likely to skip a recommended medical test or treatment due to cost. However, cost barriers to contraception have decreased for insured women since the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA’s) coverage requirement took effect.…

  • Abortion Knowledge and Attitudes: KFF Polling and Policy Insights

    Poll Finding

    This poll examines the public's knowledge and attitudes about abortion. This poll finds a majority of the public do not want to see the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade, and think recent state-level abortion restrictions are designed to make abortion access more difficult, rather than protect women’s health and safety.

  • Fact Sheet Provides an Overview of Abortion Later in Pregnancy and Policies to Regulate It

    News Release

    Abortions occurring at or after 21 weeks gestational age are rare (1.4%) and difficult to obtain, yet these abortions are subject to intense public debate in the news, policy and the law.  A new KFF fact sheet provides basic information about abortion later in pregnancy in the US, including what it is, why patients may have an abortion later in pregnancy, and the laws that regulate it. The fact sheet addresses many misconceptions about abortion later in…

  • Link to the Women’s Research and Education Institute

    Other Post

    Baby Boom to Generation X: Progress in Young Women's Health Baby Boom to Generation X: Progress in Young Women's Health, by Alina Salganicoff, Barbara Wentworth, and Liberty Greene of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a chapter from The American Woman 2003-2004, Daughters of a Revolution--Young Women Today, Cynthia Costello, Vanessa Wight, and Anne J. Stone, editors. The chapter explores the changes that have taken place in young women's health over the past twenty-five years. It discusses…

  • Emergency Contraception Resources

    Other Post

    Fact Sheet The fact sheet below includes information on EC methods, safety and side effects, and access issues. The fact sheet also provides information women's knowledge and use as well as health care provider attitudes and practices. Emergency Contraception Fact Sheet Survey The survey snapshot and toplines/survey below from the Kaiser Family Foundation's 2001 National Survey of Women's Health Care Providers on Reproductive Health is a national random-sample survey of 790 physicians, including 595 obstetrician…

  • Survey on Women’s Health in the U.S.

    Report

    New Survey on Women's Health in the U.S. A new national survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation finds most women report generally positive experiences with the health care system, but a sizable share faced problems. A significant minority of nonelderly women reported delaying or going without care in the past year or not filling a prescription due to costs. Women are more likely than men both to face these problems and express concerns about the…

  • Emergency Contraception: From Prescription to Over-the-Counter

    Other Post

    This issue update provides information on the process of making emergency contraception available without a prescription. It includes sections on how a drug becomes availible without a prescription;, the over-the counter-debate; implications for cost and use; and safety and efficacy. Issue Update