Today, a wide range of reproductive healthcare services are available through telehealth—but only if a person has reliable internet access.
The Broadband Equity Access and Deployment grant program, announced in June, is a commitment to connect all Americans to affordable high-speed internet by 2030. Created under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, BEAD requires states to prioritize unserved areas before improving service elsewhere. It has been equated to FDR’s historic Rural Electrification Act, for its potential effects on jobs, education and healthcare.
“Including abortion and other sexual reproductive healthcare in the U.S. and around the world, telehealth has the possibility of reducing barriers to care while providing solutions to care across the board,” said Dana Northcraft, founding director for the Reproductive Health Initiative for Telehealth Equity and Solutions , a nonprofit focused on bridging equity gaps in reproductive telehealth through advocacy and policy.
Approximately 36 million women of child-bearing age live in states that have banned abortion. But pro-abortion states like New York, Massachusetts and most recently California are taking bold action towards increasing access, by way ofdispensing medication abortion care to out-of-state patients.