SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California and several other Democratic-led states have announced they are challenging the Trump administration's effort to set up obstacles for women seeking abortions.
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said Monday that the state filed a federal lawsuit aiming to block a new family planning rule from the U.S. Health and Human Services Department. The rule bars taxpayer-funded family planning clinics from referring patients to abortion providers.
Washington, D.C., and 19 states said they would sue separately in Oregon on Tuesday. The states are: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin.
The federal rule is set to go into effect in May unless blocked in court.