For my final entry of the year, we thought it worthwhile to offer a snapshot—a year’s worth of reporting on the depth of damage this administration has wreaked on women’s health, with real-time Contrarian reporting noted.

The post A Very Bad Year for Women’s Health appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

These abrupt cuts are not just administrative—they are a direct attack on decades of global health progress, putting children, pregnant women and marginalized communities at heightened risk of preventable disease, unintended pregnancy and death.

Yet there is still a path forward. The infrastructure to deliver reproductive and public health services remains in place, and health workers are ready to act. If funding is restored, we can prevent the worst outcomes, safeguard global health, and ensure that the fundamental human rights to health, life and bodily autonomy are protected.

The global community must act urgently to reverse the harm and prevent a full-scale public health and human rights crisis.

The post The Ripple Effects of the U.S. Retreat from International Reproductive Care appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

According to advocates, there are qualified organizations—including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and MSI Reproductive Choices—prepared to accept and distribute the supplies at no additional cost to the U.S. government. But Secretary of State Marco Rubio, appointed earlier this year, has not authorized their release.

In response, Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) have introduced legislation to stop the destruction. The Saving Lives and Taxpayer Dollars Act would require the contraceptives to be released for their intended humanitarian use and prohibit incineration of still-viable medical supplies.

Advocates are urging members of the public to call or email their senators and representatives to demand they pressure the State Department to release the contraceptives, not destroy them.

The post U.S.-Funded Contraceptives Meant for Crisis Zones Are Headed for the Furnace—Unless Congress Acts appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

The post The U.N. Should Condemn the U.S.’ Human Rights Record on Abortion appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

Contrary to the Trump administration’s claims, cutting foreign aid for reproductive health is not a fiscal gain, but a significant step backward.  

The post Foreign Aid Cuts Will Lead to 34,000 More Pregnancy-Related Deaths in Just One Year  appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

As the U.S. continues to wield foreign aid as a political tool, the lives of the world’s most vulnerable women hang in the balance.

The post Weaponizing Aid: How U.S. Policies Undermine Reproductive Health in Humanitarian Crises appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

“They’re gagging you, they’re putting something over your mouth to prevent you from giving information. ... Silence is an enemy," Frankel told Ms. “And so, we cannot be silent. … One of the ways that we talk is with a bill.”

The post ‘Silence Is an Enemy’: Rep. Frankel Leads the Fight for Global Reproductive Rights appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

This week: Trump enacts harmful executive actions on immigration, global abortion care, DEI and foreign assistance; Trump’s new treasury secretary said expanding tax cuts for the wealthy is "the single most important economic issue of the day"; Trump pardoned anti-abortion extremists; ICE raids spread fear; 1.4 percent of trans teens participate in sports, but 40 percent are bullied at school; Whole Woman's Health has expanded its 24/7 abortion care services; states hostile to abortion rights see challenges attracting and retaining workers; female firefighters will now receive federal compensation for treatment for reproductive cancers; remembering Cecile Richards, and more.

The post Keeping Score: Trump’s Executive Orders Undo Progress; Meta Allows Hate Against Women and LGBTQ People; Abortion Ban States Are Losing Residents appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

During his first presidential term, one of Trump’s earliest actions was the reinstatement of the global gag rule—a wholly expected move from a Republican president. But he also inaugurated an unprecedented expansion of the rule’s reach … red-flagging what likely lies ahead.

Fueling the sense of urgency, Project 2025 calls for the further expansion of the gag rule beyond foreign health aid to include “all foreign assistance, including humanitarian aid.” This expansion would increase the affected funding from about $7.3 billion to about $51 billion. Project 2025’s vision of an expanded global gag rule would also, for the first time, include foreign governments in addition to NGOs within its prohibitive sweep.

Only the permanent rescission of the global gag rule will jettison this impending threat to the sexual and reproductive rights and well-being of women around the globe.

The post ‘Gagging’ Abortion Access: The Global Threat of Trump’s Second Term to Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare appeared first on Ms. Magazine.

But make no mistake—Rubio’s history of hostility toward reproductive autonomy and his recent embrace of “America First” nationalism heralds a State Department that decimates women’s health, human rights and well-being.

The post Secretary of State Marco Rubio Will Be a Disaster for Women appeared first on Ms. Magazine.