California Governor Gavin Newsom signed nine bills on Sunday strengthening the state's reproductive healthcare system, expanding access to care for students and veterans, bolstering perinatal and postpartum care, and allowing qualified health professionals to serve more patients.
The legislation makes medication abortion available on community college campuses, building on prior legislation Newsom signed in 2022 requiring California State University and University of California campuses to offer medication abortion. It also expands the ability of certified nurse-midwives, nurse practitioners and physician assistants to perform abortions within the scope of their license and training, and allows certified nurse-midwives to stabilize patients with an emergency medical condition or in active labor without physician supervision.
"For Freedom means being able to make deeply personal decisions without elected officials inserting themselves in pursuit of a political agenda," Newsom said. "California is protecting that freedom and showing the nation, particularly under increasingly severe attacks by the Trump administration, what is possible when we put patients and people first — not politics."
The bills also bolster reproductive care for veterans after the Trump administration imposed what the release described as one of the most severe abortion bans in the country through the Veterans Affairs system. California is now ensuring veterans have greater access to the full spectrum of health benefits they are owed, including abortion care.
Other measures remove a preauthorization requirement for lactation care through Medi-Cal, and provide firefighters with 26 weeks of paid maternal leave along with new resources and guidance for postpartum mothers regarding pelvic floor concerns.
The legislation includes AB 1696 by Assemblymember Catherine Stefani, AB 1854 by Assemblymember Maggy Krell, AB 1910 by Assemblymember Tasha Boerner, AB 1973 by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, AB 2160 by Assemblymember Celeste Rodriguez, AB 2531 by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, AB 2540 by Assemblymember Catherine Stefani, SB 526 by Senator Sasha Renée Pérez and SB 1271 by Senator Eloise Gómez Reyes.
The signing adds to a record of action since the Supreme Court's Dobbs v. Jackson decision, including a $50 million one-time General Fund allocation in the 2026-27 budget for reproductive health and gender-affirming care services, and $90 million in one-time emergency funds for Planned Parenthood and other clinics in January 2026.