WASHINGTON - May 8 - "As our nation works to strengthen women's health care, there is both good and bad news in this budget. While the budget is a step in the right direction toward reducing alarmingly high unintended pregnancy rates and helping ensure that young people have the information and health care they need to become healthy and productive adults, it misses an opportunity to build on one of the nation's most effective programs in reducing unintended pregnancies," said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA).

WASHINGTON - April 9 - Americans United for Separation of Church and State has called on the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to rescind a regulation put in place by former President George W. Bush dealing with religious objections to medical procedures, saying the rule could violate patients' rights.

The sweeping regulation, implemented by Bush in December, essentially gives health-care workers a right to refuse to take part in any procedure that they say violates their religious beliefs.

WASHINGTON - March 24 - Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) applauded today's ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York ordering the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) to expand access to emergency contraception (EC), also known as Plan B.

"Today's federal court ruling puts women's health ahead of politics," said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. "We must do everything we can to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and protect the health and safety of all women."

NEW YORK - March 23 - Today, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York issued a ruling that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must reconsider its decision in the case of Tummino, et al. v. von Eschenbach in which plaintiffs challenged FDA policies regarding the Morning-After Pill, often referred to by its brand name, Plan B.

“Today's news from the CDC that the teen birthrate is on the rise for the second straight year clearly demonstrate that abstinence-only programs are failing our teens.

WASHINGTON - March 6 - Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, today hailed the Obama administration for publishing the official notice announcing its intention to repeal the Federal Refusal Rule.

This rule, put in place in the closing days of the Bush administration, could allow insurance companies to deny claims for the birth-control pill, hospitals to refuse emergency contraception to rape survivors, and employees at HMOs to refuse their patients referrals for abortion care.

WASHINGTON - February 27 - The Obama administration is initiating a review of an ill-advised Bush administration rule that allows health care workers and facilities to refuse to provide reproductive health care services, even at the expense of patient safety. The rule, pushed through in the waning hours of the Bush administration despite public objection,threatens access to basic reproductive health services, including contraception and counseling for abortion care.