Reproductive Rights

California has strong laws in place protecting reproductive freedom, including the right to safe and legal abortion. In California:

• You have the right to an abortion. You do not need to provide a reason for why you are seeking an abortion.
• You have the right to confidentiality. If you are married, generally your spouse will not be notified about your abortion.
• You have the right to obtain an abortion without parental consent. If you are a minor, generally your parents or guardians will not be notified about your abortion.
• You have the right to have your prescription for medicine to bring about an abortion filled in a timely manner.
• You have the right to access abortion services for little-to-no charge. Abortion services should generally be covered by your health insurance.
• You have the right to have an abortion performed by a trained professional. Only authorized healthcare providers, such as licensed doctors, nurses-midwives, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants, with proper training, can perform abortions.
• You have the right to ask your healthcare provider if they have objections to certain forms of medical care. Healthcare providers are allowed to refuse to perform abortions for moral, ethical, or religious reasons.

If you are a California resident, you have options for free or low-cost birth control, regardless of immigration status. Your rights to free or low-cost birth control have not changed since the June 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

Your Rights to Birth Control

• You have the right to choose to have or not to have a child. You have the right to choose or refuse birth control.
• If you have health insurance through an employer, most plans cover the following services. If you have Covered California, all plans cover the following services.
  • Up to a 12-month supply of FDA-approved birth control, including the ring, patch, or oral birth control pills, dispensed at one time, for free.
• If you do not have health insurance, or if you do not use your insurance, you still can obtain, for cost, self-administered hormonal birth control from a pharmacist, without a prescription. To locate a participating pharmacist in your area visit birthcontrolpharmacies.com.

You May Be Entitled to Free Birth Control if You are on Medi-Cal or Have Low-Income

• If you are on Medi-Cal, you can receive free birth control through your plan, through any Medi-Cal provider.
• If you are an individual or household with low income, but do not qualify for Medi-Cal, you may be eligible for free birth control through the Family Planning, Access, Care, and Treatment Plan (Family PACT) program.

If You Are Under 18, You Can Obtain Birth Control Without Parental Consent

• Health care providers cannot inform your parent or legal guardian that you receive birth control, unless you agree to share that information. California law requires schools to excuse students during the school day for reproductive and sexual health services, and the school cannot inform your parent or guardian.

A copy of the consumer alert is available here.

While crisis pregnancy centers may advertise a full range of reproductive health services, they do not provide abortion or abortion referrals, and usually do not provide birth control or other forms of contraceptives. Californians who are pregnant or believe they may be pregnant should know that:

• Crisis pregnancy centers do not provide abortion or abortion referral, and often times do not provide birth control or other forms of contraceptives;
• Crisis pregnancy centers may not be licensed medical clinics or be required to keep medical records private;
• Crisis pregnancy centers may attempt to delay appointments or provide misinformation about the legality or safety of abortions;
• Crisis pregnancy centers may provide inaccurate health information about a person’s pregnancy and other aspects of reproductive healthcare; and
• Crisis pregnancy centers often look like and are located near reproductive healthcare facilities that provide abortion.

More information on crisis pregnancy centers is available in English, Spanish, Chinese (Traditional), Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Hindi/Punjabi.

Californians who have been the victim or target of deceptive, misleading, unfair, or unlawful conduct should immediately file a complaint at https://oag.ca.gov/crisis-pregnancy-center-complaint.

• California Reaffirms Individuals' Right to Contraceptive Care (02/22/24)
• One year after Roe v Wade was overturned, Attorney General Bonta Highlights Californians’ Rights to Abortion, Birth Control (06/24/23)
• California Attorney General Bonta Issues Consumer Alert Reminding Californians of Their Right to Access Free or Low-Cost Birth Control (09/26/22)
• California Attorney General Bonta Issues Consumer Alert with Tips for Protecting Your Privacy While Seeking Abortion or Reproductive Care (09/16/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Provides Guidance on Abortion Rights and Protections in California Following Supreme Court Decision Overturning Roe v. Wade (6/30/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Issues Consumer Alert Warning Californians That Crisis Pregnancy Centers Do Not Offer Abortion or Comprehensive Reproductive Care (6/1/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Emphasizes Health Apps' Legal Obligation to Protect Reproductive Health Information (5/26/22)

• Minors' Access to Emergency Contraception (02/22/24)
• Attorney General Bonta Issues Guidance to Protect Out-of-State Patients Seeking Reproductive Care in California (10/20/22)
• California Attorney General Rob Bonta Issues Legal Guidance to all District Attorneys, Police Chiefs, Sheriffs, and State Law Enforcement Agencies: We Will Not Cooperate with Out-of-State Demands Criminalizing Reproductive Care (09/23/22)
• Information Bulletin: California Freedom of Access to Clinic and Church Entrances Act and the Reproductive Rights Law Enforcement Act (06/13/22)
• Attorney General Bonta: California Law Does Not Criminalize Pregnancy Loss (1/6/22)

• Attorney General Bonta Co-Leads Multistate Coalition in Fight Against Idaho’s Radical Abortion Ban (09/15/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Joins Multistate Coalition Against Idaho Anti-Abortion Law (08/01/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Co-Leads 22 States to Protect Patients Against Texas’ Attempt to Exclude Abortion from Emergency Healthcare 05/09/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Backs Federal Fight to Defend Medication Abortion Access (05/01/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Co-Leads Multistate Coalition Opposing Restrictions to Title X Family Planning Program (05/01/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Urges U.S. Supreme Court to Protect Access to Medication Abortion (04/14/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Supports Federal Challenge to Court Order Restricting Medication Abortion Access (04/10/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Joins Multistate Amicus Brief Defending Access to Mifepristone (02/10/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Leads Multistate Coalition in Protecting the Right to Interstate Travel to Seek Abortions (09/23/22)
• Attorneys General Bonta and James Lead Multistate Coalition Opposing Texas’ Attempt to Exclude Abortion from Emergency Healthcare (08/16/22)
• Attorneys General Bonta and James Lead Multistate Coalition in Amicus Brief Challenging Idaho’s Near Total Ban on Abortion (08/16/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Defends Federally-Funded Family Planning Program and Screening Services for Underserved Communities (03/31/22)
• Attorney General Bonta: Arizona’s Abortion “Reason Ban” is Unconstitutional and Should Remain Blocked (12/27/21)
• Attorney General Bonta Continues to Fight Unconstitutional Attempts to Rollback Reproductive Rights, Opposes Indiana’s Abortion Restrictions (11/09/2021)
• Attorney General Bonta: Texas Cannot Avoid Judicial Review of Its Unconstitutional Abortion Ban (10/27/2021)
• Attorney General Bonta: Texas Abortion Ban is Unconstitutional and Contravenes Nearly Half a Century of Supreme Court Precedent (10/18/2021)
• Attorney General Bonta Joins Coalition in Opposition to South Carolina’s Unconstitutional Abortion Ban (09/08/2021)

• Letter to Chain Pharmacy Corporate Office (02/22/24)
• Attorney General Bonta Co-Leads Coalition of 24 States in Support of Stronger Federal Protections for Reproductive Health Data Privacy (06/16/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Leads Coalition of 22 States in Support of Increased Access to Birth Control Coverage (04/04/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Co-Leads Multistate Coalition in Support of Medication Abortion at CVS, Walgreens Stores (02/16/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Joins Multistate Coalition Urging Apple to Take Action to Better Protect Reproductive Health Data in Third-Party Apps (11/21/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Leads 21 States in Urging FDA to Approve Country’s First Over-The-Counter Birth Control Pill (11/04/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Leads Multistate Coalition in Comment Letter Supporting the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Rule Expanding Access to Abortion Care (10/11/22)
• Attorneys General Bonta and James Lead Coalition Supporting the Biden Administration’s Work to Undo Trump's Harmful Rule Requiring Separate Abortion Billing (07/29/21)

• Attorney General Bonta, California Legislative Black Caucus Introduce Legislation to Reduce Black Maternal Mortality Through Implicit Bias Training (02/12/24)
• Governor Newsom Signs Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan and Attorney General Bonta’s Groundbreaking Legislation Protecting Digital Information on Abortion (09/27/22)
• NEWS: @CAGovernor signed a suite of bills backed by CADOJ to protect and expand reproductive rights in California. The Golden State will continue fighting to protect reproductive rights. (09/27/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Testifies at Maryland Cybersecurity Council on California’s Groundbreaking Effort to Protect Digital Information on Abortion (09/22/22)
• Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan and Attorney General Bonta’s Legislation Protecting Digital Information on Abortion Heads to the Governor (08/31/22)

• Attorney General Bonta Demands Entity Providing Sexual Education to Modesto Public Schools Demonstrate Compliance with State Law (04/08/24)
• Attorney General Bonta Announces Results of Investigation into Anti-Bias Training for Pregnancy Care Providers (10/27/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Releases First-Ever Reproductive Healthcare in Jails Report (8/24/23)
• Reproductive Healthcare Access in California County Jails Report (8/24/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Takes Action to Ensure Legally Mandated Reproductive Healthcare is Provided in County Jails (2/14/22)

• Attorney General Bonta Sues Anti-Abortion Group, Five California Crisis Pregnancy Centers for Misleading Patients (09/24/23)
• NEWS: Kern Superior Court ruled in our favor in our defense of the Abortion Accessibility Act! (12/17/22)
• Attorney General Bonta: We’ve secured a court ruling ensuring people seeking reproductive care continue to have their privacy protected at abortion clinics (08/08/22)

• Attorney General Bonta Issues Statement on Fifth Circuit Ruling on Medication Abortion (08/16/23)
• Attorney General Bonta: FDA Panel Recommendation on Nation’s First OTC Birth Control Pill is Excellent News (05/10/23)
• Attorney General Bonta: Supreme Court Stay on Texas Medication Abortion Decision Means Patients Retain Access to Mifepristone While Litigation Continues (04/21/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Denounces Texas Court Decision Suspending Approval of Mifepristone for Medication Abortion (04/07/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Issues Statement on Walgreens' Decision to Restrict Medication Abortion Access (03/03/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Joins Coalition to Support New Mexico’s Actions to Safeguard Abortion Access (03/03/23)
• Attorney General Bonta: District Court Rightfully Blocks Enforcement of Idaho’s Radical Abortion Ban (08/24/22)
• Attorney General Bonta, National Coalition of Attorneys General Issue Joint Statement Reaffirming Commitment to Protecting Access to Abortion Care (6/27/22)
• Attorney General Bonta: California Won’t Backslide, We’ll Keep Fighting to Strengthen and Expand Access to Safe and Legal Abortion (6/24/22)
• Attorney General Bonta Reaffirms Commitment to Protecting Reproductive Rights (5/3/22)

• Attorney General Bonta: As Attacks on Reproductive Rights Persist, California Will Continue to Lead Nationwide Defense (05/02/23)
• Attorney General Bonta Launches California Reproductive Rights Task Force (10/25/22)

If you are on your spouse’s insurance, your spouse may receive an insurance notification about approval for services.

Healthcare providers cannot inform your parents or guardians that you received an abortion without your signed, written consent. However, they must notify your parents if you are under 12 and report sexual assault or rape.

Medi-Cal provides abortion coverage free of charge. Most state-regulated private health plans and insurance companies must cover abortion services as part of your health insurance benefits. However, self-funded employer health benefits are not required to provide abortion coverage, though many do. If you are unsure whether your health plan provides abortion coverage, review your health plan’s coverage documents.

Starting in 2023, state-regulated private health plans and insurance companies cannot require co-pays, deductibles or similar charges for abortion-related services.

You are entitled to review coverage documents provided by your health insurance plan. These documents may be called an Evidence of Coverage or Summary of Benefits and Coverage, and should tell you whether the plan will cover your abortion. If you do not have your plan documents, call your plan and ask for a copy. You do not need to provide a reason to request a copy.

If you believe that you were unlawfully charged for abortion services or you were denied any of the aforementioned rights, please immediately file a complaint at https://oag.ca.gov/report

If you have health insurance through Covered California or Medi-Cal, you’re covered! You have the right to get any FDA-approved method of birth control, without any cost to you. That means you cannot be charged any co-pays or cost sharing.

If you have health insurance through your employer/spouse/parent, your options depend on the kind of health plan. You will need to contact your plan to find out. If your plan does not cover birth control without cost-sharing or co-pays, California’s Family Planning, Access, Care, and Treatment Plan (Family PACT) may be an option for you. Please visit the FamilyPACT.org website to see if you are eligible.

The FDA has approved several different methods of birth control. You can choose the method that is right for you. Approved methods include: intrauterine devices (IUDs), implantable rods, contraceptive injection, combination oral contraceptives, progestin-only oral contraceptives, patch, vaginal contraceptive ring, diaphragm, sponge, cervical cap, emergency contraception, and sterilization.

You can contact the Attorney General’s Public Inquiry Unit to file a complaint. Consumer Complaint Against A Business/Company

Starting in 2023, state-regulated private health plans and insurance companies cannot require co-pays, deductibles or similar charges for abortion-related services.

There are also programs available to assist you with obtaining birth control:

• The Title X Family Planning Clinic Locator provides information about clinics that offer a broad range of family planning and preventative health services.
• TeenSource.org features accurate and reliable information about STDs, birth control, healthy relationships, and teen rights to accessing sensitive services in California.

• If you have health insurance through an employer, most plans cover the following services. If you have Covered California, all plans cover the following services.
  • Free STI prevention counseling and at-home STI test kits
  • Free HIV and other STI screening, if you are age 18-65, at increased risk, or pregnant
  • Free pre-exposure, prophylaxis (PrEP) HIV prevention medication, if you are at high risk for getting HIV through sex or injection drug use
• If you are on Medi-Cal, you have access to any of the above services.
• If you are over 12 years old, you can obtain STI testing and treatment without parental consent.