Governor Gavin Newsom has signed nine bills to expand California's reproductive healthcare system, according to the Office of the Governor.
The legislation expands access to medication abortion on community college campuses, building on prior laws that made medication abortion available on California State University and University of California campuses. The bills also broaden the ability of certified nurse-midwives, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants to perform abortions within their scope of training, and allow these professionals to stabilize patients with emergency medical conditions or in active labor without requiring physician supervision.
The bills also strengthen reproductive healthcare for veterans, eliminate a preauthorization requirement for lactation care through Medi-Cal, and expand perinatal support. Among the provisions is an extension of paid maternity leave for firefighters to 26 weeks, along with new resources for postpartum care.
"Freedom means being able to make deeply personal decisions without elected officials inserting themselves in pursuit of a political agenda," Newsom said. "California is protecting that freedom and showing the nation, particularly under increasingly severe attacks by the Trump administration, what is possible when we put patients and people first — not politics."