This bill would add a new section to the Public Health Service Act requiring the Secretary of Health and Human Services to run a national public health education, awareness, and outreach campaign to enhance access to abortion and related health services. The campaign must provide information about where and how to access abortion, including medication abortion (mifepristone and misoprostol), by in-person care and telehealth. It must cover the legality and availability of prescribing, dispensing, and receiving abortion services consistent with State and Federal law, and give medically accurate information about abortion. The campaign must explain patients' rights to travel across State lines for care and list organizations that can help with travel. It must teach people how to tell the difference between facilities that provide abortion services and so-called crisis pregnancy centers, how to spot disinformation about abortion, and how to protect sensitive personal and health information. The campaign must post the information on the Department of Health and Human Services website and be designed to be culturally competent and accessible to underserved groups, including people of color, immigrants, people with disabilities, people with limited English, people with low incomes, young people, LGBTQI+ people, rural residents, and people on Tribal land or served by the Indian Health Service. The bill says the campaign must not promote misinformation about safety, promote "abortion reversal," promote abstinence-only-until-marriage programs, or collect, retain, use, or disclose personal information about visitors to campaign websites or apps. The Secretary must consult with health care experts in sexual and reproductive health, nonprofit organizations focused on reproductive rights and justice, State and local public health departments, and nonprofit colleges and universities. The bill defines "abortion and related health services" and explains what counts as "medically accurate and complete information," citing examples of professional medical organizations.
If enacted, HHS would publish national information on its website about how to find and use abortion services, including medication abortion and telehealth. The campaign would include information on travel across State lines and groups that can help people get care. It would aim to reach underserved communities and provide medically based information. The campaign is barred from collecting personal data about people who use its websites or apps.
No publicly available information.
Supporters of the bill, as reflected in the text, seek a coordinated national campaign to improve public knowledge about how to obtain abortion and related services, to provide medically accurate information, to counter disinformation and misleading claims, to protect personal health information, and to make information accessible to underserved communities.
No publicly available information.