Midwest Leaders Are Uniting to Protect Health Care Access for Millions
Written by:
Adrienne White-Faines, President & CEO of Planned Parenthood Illinois Action
Erica Wilson-Domer, President & CEO of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio
Paula Thornton Greear, President & CEO of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan
Ruth Richardson, President of Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund
Tanya Atkinson, President of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin
In the post-Roe hellscape that has left millions of Americans without access to abortion, Midwestern states are building a critical network of care. In Michigan, voters amended the state constitution in 2022 on the largest petition drive in state history, nullifying a 1931 criminal abortion ban, which lawmakers then repealed outright. Ohio voters bypassed their statehouses at the ballot box in 2023. State leaders in Minnesota and Illinois have cemented protections for sexual and reproductive health care into law. In Wisconsin, the governor’s veto pen remains a critical line of defense against an anti-abortion legislature.
Yet despite this political patchwork of efforts to protect reproductive health care, one truth unites our region: no state is insulated from the post-Roe health care collapse.
When one state restricts abortion care, bans gender-affirming care, or starves funding for Planned Parenthood, there is a domino effect that strains neighboring systems across state lines. Hospitals and clinics close or restrict access in one area, forcing people to travel across counties and borders for care. The result is that the entire regional health care system is weakened.
As Midwestern Planned Parenthood affiliates, we are claiming our collective political power not because our states are identical, but because patients' lives, health care, and political futures are inextricably linked. Our region is a critical access point not just for Midwesterners, but for people across the country who are forced to travel from states with restrictive laws.
When someone from Florida comes to a health center in Illinois, our impact—and the work we’ve done to protect access to reproductive health care in our states—is felt at a national level. By protecting reproductive health care for Midwesterners, we’re protecting reproductive health care for the nation.
But in the face of attacks from the Trump administration, access to quality sexual and reproductive health care is shrinking. In 2025, Republicans in Congress passed a one-year provision to cut Planned Parenthood health centers out of Medicaid reimbursement. Since then, more than 50 health centers have closed nationwide. A majority of rural health center closures were in the Midwest, deepening existing inequities in access to care. The 26 health centers that closed in the Midwest provided birth control to nearly 25,000 patients a year.
The impact of these closures has been devastating. Staff have been laid off, education programs overhauled, and thousands of people who rely on Planned Parenthood have lost access to care that can only happen in person: cancer screenings, wellness exams, and long-acting birth control that a clinician has to place.
The provision to defund Planned Parenthood expired in July of 2026, and anti-abortion congressmembers are now pushing to make the defunding permanent.
This would be catastrophic for the nation’s broader health care system. As a safety net provider, Planned Parenthood fills a critical gap in health care access, serving uninsured people, people with low incomes, young people, and people who live in rural communities. Planned Parenthood remains an essential provider of sexual and reproductive healthcare, in our states, the region, and throughout the country, protecting access for everybody.
When politicians attack Planned Parenthood, they are putting ideology before the health of their constituents. We’ve already seen how their attacks on abortion have dangerous consequences. Abortion bans have led to OB/GYN physician shortages and maternity care deserts, particularly in our rural communities. More women are dying within a year of pregnancy and delivery, and more infants are dying before the age of one in states with abortion bans.
As we enter another election cycle, reproductive health care cannot take a backseat. The majority of Americans support legal abortion, but Planned Parenthood remains the target of politically motivated attacks. The Trump administration is now threatening to dismantle Title X, the nation’s 55-year-old family planning program. Title X is a vital source of funding for Planned Parenthood patients who have little to no income, no insurance, and nowhere else to turn for care.
Alongside the price of gas and groceries, reproductive health care is a daily, kitchen-table issue. Even across a starkly divided electorate, support for Planned Parenthood remains steadfast among all voters. In 2025, nearly 8 in 10 (77%) voters opposed the Trump administration taking away funds from Planned Parenthood health centers. That included 63% of Trump voters.
Whether in the land of 10,000 lakes, on the Pleasant Peninsula, or in the Buckeye state, Midwesterners are telling their leaders to protect their health care, and every candidate on the ballot this November has a chance to show voters they are listening. The pro-choice majority that delivered historic turnout in 2022 and 2024 is still here, and it is watching. The path to victory, and to protecting the future of all Midwesterners, must include reproductive freedom.
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Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan (PPAM) is the advocacy arm of Planned Parenthood of Michigan. PPAM works in conjunction with Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund at the national level, as well as our health center/education affiliate, Planned Parenthood of Michigan, supporters, and patients at the state level to ensure access to reproductive health for all Michiganders.
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