May 2, 2022 - Economy

Amazon to reimburse employees traveling for abortions, other treatments

Oriana González

Photo: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Amazon has told its U.S. employees that it will cover their expenses when they travel to access non-life threatening medical procedures, including abortions, Reuters reported and Axios has confirmed.

The big picture: Amazon's decision comes after Citigroup and Yelp both announced they would reimburse travel expenses for abortion care as a direct response to a slew of bills passing in red states looking to restrict access to the procedure.

The Supreme Court is currently considering a case that could potentially end, or limit, federal protections on abortion. As a result, some private companies like Bumble and Match have moved to support their employees' abortion rights via relief funds.

State of play: Amazon's new policy is not specific to abortion. The company will also reimburse employees for treatments like cellular gene therapies, services for substance abuse and others.

Amazon will cover up to $4,000 in travel expenses, and the policy will apply if the medical treatment is not available within 100 miles of a U.S.-based employee's home and if remote care is not available, per Reuters.

Between the lines: The company on Monday also stopped offering paid time off for workers who test positive for COVID-19, CNBC reports. Instead, employees will get up to five days of unpaid leave.

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Amazon to reimburse employees traveling for abortions, other treatments

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