Biden to sign executive order formalizing reproductive care, privacy protections

President Joe Biden will sign an executive order Friday shoring up federal protections around reproductive care access, patient privacy and other concerns raised in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, according to the White House.

Many of the order’s instructions fall in line with tactics outlined by the administration in recent weeks.

For instance, the order would formalize promises from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to ramp up public education around reproductive care services and protect access to medication abortion and contraception, including emergency contraception and long-acting reversible contraception.

The executive order would instruct HHS and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to better protect patient and consumer privacy.

It would also instruct administration lawyers to convene volunteer lawyers to represent those seeking reproductive care outside of their state; establish an interagency task force to guide future policymaking; and formalize protective security for patients, providers, clinics and others involved in reproductive care services.

“President Biden has made clear that the only way to secure a woman’s right to choose is for Congress to restore the protections of Roe as federal law,” the Administration said in a statement announcing the executive order. “Until then, he has committed to doing everything in his power to defend reproductive rights and protect access to safe and legal abortion.”

HHS and other agencies have shared resources and expressed their support for reproductive care protections over the past few weeks while simultaneously voicing frustrations over their limited legal power to counteract the top court’s decision.

The administration has also come under fire from numerous Democrats for dragging its feet on federal abortion access protections. Today’s executive order will likely do little to blunt the ire of some party members who have urged Biden to take full advantage of his executive powers, including the declaration of a public health emergency and a national emergency for additional federal flexibilities.