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AG Nessel, Planned Parenthood CEO Discuss Post-Dobbs Threats to Reproductive Rights

LANSING – In the latest episode of Pantsuits and Lawsuits, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel sits down with President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America Alexis McGill Johnson for a conversation about the devastating consequences of the post-Dobbs reality in the United States.

Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the federal legal precedent protecting the constitutional right to abortion. In the episode, McGill Johnson reveals the coordinated, multi-pronged attack against reproductive healthcare access since that decision, from Title X funding cuts targeting Planned Parenthood to Supreme Court challenges that could strip Medicaid patients of their provider choices. With 22 states now operating under abortion bans, one in three American women of reproductive age lives without access to complete healthcare.

The episode also reflects on the significance of Michigan voters’ decision in 2022 to pass Proposal 3, codifying reproductive rights, including access to abortion, in the Constitution of Michigan. Despite this, Nessel emphasized the continuing vigilance needed to protect those rights amid national groups aiming to chip away at bodily autonomy.

“Rather than respecting the choices made by individual states, anti-choice groups have continued to mount targeted legal challenges with the express purpose of chipping away at Americans' remaining rights to bodily autonomy – from abortion to IVF, birth control, and even the ability for a person to manage their own miscarriage,” Nessel said. “I want to thank Alexis for taking the time to talk to me about the many critical issues that Planned Parenthood is facing.” 

Attorney General Nessel also highlights her own efforts to protect reproductive freedom, including joining a coalition of 17 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in March urging the U.S. Supreme Court to affirm a lower court’s decision recognizing Medicaid recipients’ individual right to receive care from the qualified providers of their choice, including Planned Parenthood.

New episodes of Pantsuits and Lawsuits are released biweekly to break down complex legal topics in a way that is engaging, informative, and accessible to listeners. With their blend of expertise, humor, and straight talk, Attorneys General Kris Mayes and Nessel explore major legal cases, analyze state and national policy debates and discuss how attorneys general help shape justice. Through these discussions, listeners will gain a behind-the-scenes look at the work attorneys general do to serve and protect their communities.

The latest episode is available now on major podcast platforms. The next episode of Pantsuits and Lawsuits will be released next Friday, May 9.

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