The historic 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that gave women in the United States the right to an abortion for decades was overturned by the Supreme Court on Friday. There is no longer a constitutional right to abortion in the United States. Some companies have already responded and are announcing support.
The clothing group Gap Inc. published a statement on its website on Friday, in which it acknowledges its workforce, three quarters (76 percent) of which are women. Gap’s mental health and family planning services include adoption, surrogacy, fertility treatments, paid parental leave and contraception, as well as abortion.
“All employees enrolled under Gap Inc.’s UnitedHealthcare plans may receive our benefits in any state they reside in or travel to, now or in the future. We’re committed to supporting all employees in making these important life decisions – regardless of where they live or what path they choose to pursue,” Gap said.
Abortion part of family planning
Sporting goods giant Nike also said just hours after the ruling was overturned that it would ensure all employees continued to have access to family planning services, including abortion, regardless of where they lived.
With clinics already closing their doors on Friday, the support doesn’t come a day too soon. “Nike offers comprehensive family planning services. No matter where our employees are on their family planning journey – from contraception and abortion to pregnancy and family building support through fertility, surrogacy and adoption benefits – we are here to support their decisions,” promised Nike in a statement.
Specifically, the company will cover travel and accommodation costs if no services are available near the employee’s place of residence. Nike also announced that it would regularly adjust its benefits to ensure employees have access to good health care in all areas.
Outside the apparel industry, companies including Amazon, Starbucks, Netflix, Microsoft, Facebook parent Meta and JP Morgen Chase also pledged similar support. Tesla, Citigroup, Apple and Salesforce had already expanded abortion insurance for employees in recent weeks to include the cost of travel if necessary.
Ride-sharing companies like Lyft and Uber have pledged to provide legal support to their drivers if they are sued for driving passengers to an abortion.
While companies were quick to respond when it came to their employee health insurance policies, many stayed away from the topic itself or the word “abortion.” FashionUnited will follow the discussion and post updates.