Women’s History Month should be a time to celebrate the enormous progress made in securing women’s rights and the legal, educational and social advancements since the movement’s conception in 1848. Instead of celebrating that history, women all over the country are bracing for the regressive Trump agenda that seeks to undermine and overturn so many of those rights. In his second term, President Donald Trump has already threatened women’s rights and autonomy, primarily by attacking access to health care and the continued advancement of the field.
Abortion is a medical necessity, not a political issue. The United States has the highest maternal mortality rate among high-income countries, with 22 out of every 100,000 birthing parents dying from live births. While some women seek abortions due to life threatening health issues such as preeclampsia, or as a result of traumatic circumstances like rape or sexual abuse, others may elect for an abortion due to financial constraints, contraceptive failure or personal readiness, among other reasons. Motivations for an elective abortion should not be put into question — no matter the reason, it is their constitutional right to choose.
Since his inauguration, Trump has signed off on a multitude of executive orders targeting reproductive freedoms, such as reinstating the Hyde Amendment, which reversed a Biden-era policy to use federal taxpayer dollars to fund elective abortions. Not only does this move explicitly reverse progress made in expanding access to reproductive health care, but it also disproportionately affects low-income women who rely on Medicaid — which covers more than 16 million women of reproductive age — for essential reproductive care and access to elective abortion.
Trump’s policies also pose a risk to inclusive health care for women and non-binary people by ordering government agencies to remove guidance documents that do not support his restricting, traditional idea of “biological truth” — meaning one’s gender has to adhere to their sex assigned at birth. This has largely dismissed the identities, and therefore protections, of LGBTQ+, transgender, non-binary and intersex individuals. Trump has threatened to revoke federal funding from institutions that provide gender-affirming care such as hormonal replacement therapy and hysterectomies. While this is a direct effort to harm transgender individuals, it also undermines the ability for cisgender women to access these treatments for issues relating to menopause and hormone regulation.
However, progress is still being made and there’s still a need for continued advocacy and action. The NYU Grossman School of Medicine has been conducting the NYU Women’s Health Study for over 30 years — one of the longest-running projects of its kind — which researches causes of chronic disease and cancer in women with a goal of developing effective prevention models. At Columbia University, researchers in the obstetrics and gynecology department have been working for over a decade to implement the Safe Motherhood Initiative to work toward maternal mortality prevention. The NYU Student Health Center also offers a wide range of services free of charge, including testing for sexually transmitted infections, Pap smears, birth control prescriptions and gender-affirming care coordination. While the idea of receiving gynecological care can be scary, Women’s History Month is a time to view the act as empowering.
In addition to research and resources like these, political action is necessary to safeguard accessible health care. Our government must prioritize expanding access to insurance for women’s health care with policies that extend postpartum coverage and expand programs like Medicaid and Medicare.
The actions of the Trump administration are worsening an already existing problem in health care. By fighting against stigma and for equitable access to care and research, we can counteract the policies and governmental powers that undermine women’s autonomy. Our health is a human right and it is through unwavering action and advocacy that we can protect it. Our bodies, our choice.
WSN’s Opinion section strives to publish ideas worth discussing. The views presented in the Opinion section are solely the views of the writer.
Contact Anjali Mehta at [email protected].
