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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  • One Year Since Dobbs: The Landscape of Abortion Policies Across the US  

    News Release

    There has been intense focus on abortion policies across the United States since the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization on June 24, 2022. That decision overturned Roe v. Wade, eliminating federal constitutional protections for abortion and putting the decision to restrict or protect abortion with the states.  Now, nearly one year later, what is the status of federal and state developments? Where is abortion banned? Where is litigation pending? And…

  • Similar Shares of Republican, Democratic, and Independent Women (One in Seven) Report Having Had an Abortion

    News Release

    A new nationally representative KFF Women’s Health Survey, which explores the extensive implications of Roe v. Wade being overturned by the Supreme Court, reveals that one in seven (14%) women of reproductive age report having had an abortion at some point in their life. Across partisanship, similar shares of Republican women (12%), Democratic women (14%), and independents (15%) report having had an abortion. The survey uncovered concern over access to abortion services in emergencies. More…

  • Access to Care and Use of Health Services by Low-Income Women

    Issue Brief

    This article, by Ruth Almeida and Lisa Dubay of the Urban Institute and Grace Ko of Brown University, examines the effect of insurance on low-income women's access to care and use of health services. Using the 1997 National Survey of America's Families, it examines access to health care for three groups of low-income women: those with Medicaid, those with private coverage, and those with no insurance. Uninsured low-income women were found to have experienced greater…

  • Access to Care for Low-Income Women: The Impact of Medicaid

    Issue Brief

    Health coverage is of critical importance to low-income women. This study was undertaken to assess how low-income women with Medicaid, private insurance, or no insurance vary with regard to personal characteristics, health status, and health utilization. Data are from a telephone interview survey of a representative cross-sectional sample of 5,200 low-income women in Minnesota, Oregon, Tennessee, Florida, and Texas. On the whole, low-income women were found to experience considerable barriers to care; however, uninsured low-income…

  • Health Coverage and Expenses: Impact on Older Women’s Economic Well-Being

    Issue Brief

    In this article in the Journal of Women, Politics & Policy, researchers from the Kaiser Family Foundation examine how health issues that women face over the course of their lives, as well as policies that shape Medicare, Medicaid and other supplemental coverage, can affect retired women's economic well-being. They found that women's health care expenses were higher than men's; that older women paid for a greater share of their total spending out of pocket and that…

  • 1 Year Later: Medical Abortion After FDA Approval

    Report

    On September 28, 2000, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved mifepristone (RU486), the first dedicated medical abortion pill regimen. Many advocates on both sides of the abortion debate predicted that arrival of this new option would transform the abortion landscape - for women, for doctors, and for politicians. So, a year later, where are we? Chart Pack

  • Women at Risk: A View from the Safety Net

    Video

    This video provides a snapshot of the Arlington (Va.) Free Clinic where, four times a month, medical personnel provide care and screenings exclusively to women. The video explores the hurdles that uninsured women face in accessing health care and the social issues, including work and family responsibilities, that create challenges for them. It is a companion to the report, “Putting Women’s Health Care Disparities On The Map: Examining Racial and Ethnic Disparities at the State…

  • Examining Racial and Ethnic Disparities Among Women at the State Level

    Event Date:
    Event

    A decade after U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher called for the elimination of racial disparities in health, women of color in every state continue to fare worse than white women on a variety of measures of health and health care access. The Foundation has created a package of resources, including a comprehensive report, state fact sheets, and interactive data tables, that illuminate and document the persistence of disparities on 25 indicators between white women and…