Essay
Following the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, abortion remains legal in Minnesota. Minnesota has become a safe state for reproductive healthcare. This surge in patient volume has placed a significant strain on Minnesota clinics. Many face long wait times, staffing shortages, higher costs, and increased security risks. To respond, last February, lawmakers introduced HF 1278 and SF 1890, identical bills that would create the Reproductive Health Equity Grant Fund.
This bill is about ensuring that people can access quality reproductive healthcare, which Minnesota has chosen to protect. The legislation would set aside $30 million in 2026 to support licensed clinics and trusted organizations that provide safe, legal abortion care. Funding would help facilities hire staff, expand services, strengthen security, and deliver high-quality, culturally competent care. It would also target communities that face the greatest barriers to reproductive healthcare, including rural, low-income, Black, and Indigenous Minnesotans. Strong privacy protections are built into the bill, ensuring that clinics receiving funds cannot collect or share any personal patient information.
This legislation aims to protect access to healthcare that is already legal in Minnesota because a right means little if people can’t actually use it. It will help clinics manage the increased demand caused by bans in nearby states. Additionally, the bill promotes health equity by ensuring people from all backgrounds, not just those with money, transportation, or insurance, can get the care they need. Finally, the bill strengthens patient safety and privacy at a time when both are increasingly threatened.
In a post-Dobbs world, passing this bill means protecting Minnesotans’ ability to make their own decisions about their own bodies. This bill does not debate whether abortion should be legal. Minnesota settled that question with the 2023 Protect Reproductive Options (PRO) Act. This bill focuses on making that legal right accessible in practice. HF1278 and SF1890 are about access, affordability, privacy, safety, quality of care, and sustainability. With respect to funding, the Hyde Amendment prohibits federal money from paying for abortions, but Minnesota is legally allowed to use state funds for this purpose.
It is time to pass this bill, for those who need it, whether they live here or are forced to travel here because their own states took those rights away.