California: Governor Newsom slams RFK Jr.’s plan to target abortion access with bogus “review” of safe, legal abortion medication
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May 15, 2025

Governor Newsom slams RFK Jr.'s plan to target abortion access with bogus "review" of safe, legal abortion medication

Sacramento, California — Governor Gavin Newsom today condemned U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for calling on the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct a "complete review" of mifepristone — the safe, effective, and FDA-approved abortion medication used in more than 60% of abortions nationwide.

RFK Jr.'s request is based not on new scientific data, but bogus political "research" from a conservative organization, the Ethics & Public Policy Center — a group with a long history of opposing reproductive rights. Mifepristone has been FDA-approved since 2000 and has a well-established safety record backed by over two decades of use and clinical data.

"This is yet another attack on women's reproductive freedom and scientifically-reviewed health care from an HHS Secretary who just yesterday said in a Senate hearing: 'I don't think people should be taking medical advice from me.' California will continue to protect every person's right to make their own medical decisions and help ensure that Mifepristone is available to those who need it."

Governor Gavin Newsom

Newsom actions to protect abortion access

In the years since the Dobbs decision, California has stepped up to lead the way in protecting access to reproductive freedom for people in California and for those who travel to California to access this essential health care:
  • May 2025: The 2025-2026 May Revision proposes expanding the authority of CalRx to purchase brand-name drugs. This change gives the state more tools to respond to supply chain disruptions, market manipulation, or politically motivated restrictions that could threaten access to essential medications — including medication abortion.
  • May 2024: Governor Newsom signed SB 233 with the Legislative Women's Caucus to allow Arizona abortion providers to temporarily provide abortion care to patients from Arizona who travel to California for care following the Arizona Supreme Court's ruling to reimpose a regressive 1864 law imposing a near-total abortion ban in their state.
  • January 2024: The Reproductive Freedom Alliance, led by Governor Newsom, filed an amicus curiae brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Food and Drug Administration, et al., v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, arguing that, if the Court allowed the Fifth Circuit's decision rejecting FDA's approval of mifepristone to stand, it would undermine Governors' ability to provide adequate healthcare services and would have far-reaching implications beyond reproductive healthcare. The Supreme Court sided with the FDA in June 2024.
  • May 2023: First Partner Siebel Newsom spoke with the California Legislative Women's Caucus about the State's efforts to protect reproductive freedom.
  • April 2023: Governor Newsom procured an emergency stockpile of Misoprostol, a safe and effective medication abortion drug, as legal challenges continue to move through the courts in an attempt to block Mifepristone.
  • March 2023: Governor Newsom joined 13 other Governors in calling on major pharmacies to clarify plans for dispensing Mifepristone and other actions they plan to take to safeguard access to reproductive health care drugs.
  • February 2023: Governor Newsom launched the Reproductive Freedom Alliance, a coalition of 22 Governors fighting together to protect and advance reproductive freedom.
  • January 2023: First Partner Siebel Newsom joined reproductive rights leaders on the steps of the California Capitol to talk about the importance of storytelling, uplifting voices, and sharing lived-experiences when it comes to the fight for reproductive freedom.
  • November 2022:
    • Governor Newsom posthumously pardoned California abortion provider Laura Miner as a powerful reminder of the generations of people who fought for reproductive freedom in this country.
    • Voters pass Governor Newsom and the Legislature's Proposition 1, an amendment to the state constitution to enshrine the right to reproductive freedom – including abortion care and contraception.
  • September 2022:
    • Governor Newsom launched Abortion.CA.Gov to ensure people across California, and the country, can access essential information regarding reproductive health care, including resources available to support access to care.
    • Governor Newsom, working with the Legislature, ensured California passed the largest reproductive freedom bill package in state history, building firewalls around California as a reproductive freedom state.
  • June 2022, Governor Newsom:
    • Signed legislation to help protect patients and providers in California against radical attempts by other states to extend their anti-abortion laws into California, on the same day Roe v. Wade was overturned.
    • Invested over $200 million in reproductive health care. A large amount of these funds have already been disbursed for a variety of community efforts to maintain and increase reproductive health care services.
    • Issued an Executive Order protecting all state-held data and information from being used by out-of-state anti-abortion groups to target providers and patients.

Joined the Governors of Oregon and Washington to launch a new Multi-State Commitment to defend access to reproductive health care and protect patients and providers.

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