Reproductive health site goes dark after inaugural
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theSkimm's reproduction of the now-inaccessible federal website. Screenshot: theskimm.com
A federal website on reproductive rights that became inaccessible following President Trump's inauguration on Monday was captured for posterity by the media company theSkimm, which reproduced the content on its own site.
Why it matters: ReproductiveRights.gov, launched by Health and Human Services in 2022, provided a one-stop shop for information on abortion rights and coverage of birth control and other reproductive and women's health services.
- It also included information on patient privacy, how to get reproductive health care without insurance and how to make a civil rights complaint.
State of play: The federal website has been offline since at least Monday evening, CBS News reported.
- The page is still accessible on the Internet Archive. TheSkimm's webpage also shows the content as it was published on the page as of Jan. 15, the last time it was saved to the archive. TheSkimm notes that the information on its webpage does not reflect the policies of the current administration.
- "In the wake of its disappearance, theSkimm is publishing the content of ReproductiveRights.gov to ensure that the critical information and resources it outlined remain available to women and families," theSkimm's webpage reads.
- Another page hosted by the Department of Justice on the agency's reproductive rights task force, also created by the Biden administration in 2022, was still online as of Wednesday evening.
HHS did not directly respond to questions about ReproductiveRights.gov but noted to Axios that the agency has paused external communications and public appearances as the new administration sets up a process to review and prioritize information.
What we're watching: What executive actions Trump takes on reproductive health. He is expected to reinstate the so-called Mexico City policy, which blocks organizations abroad from receiving U.S. global health funding if they provide or promote abortion.
