A sign on the entrance to the U.S. National Arboretum on Oct. 1, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)
As the government’s shutdown continues this week, here at Ms. we are examining just how much is at stake for women and their families in this fight: the ACA tax credits that make health insurance more affordable for millions, which the Democrats are fighting to save; and the funding gutted from Medicaid in the Republicans’ budget bill this summer, which Democrats are fighting to restore. In a recent piece for Ms., Lelaine Bigelow explains the importance of Medicaid and the ACA to women:
“If cuts to premium tax credits and Medicaid stick, this won’t just be another budget fight. It will be a quiet repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA)—and women will bear the brunt of it.”
But Republicans have continued to shut out Democrats from all negotiations on the stopgap funding bill, playing a blatantly partisan game. They are claiming that Senate Democrats are filibustering passage of the funding resolution, but with their control of the Senate, Republicans have the power to suspend or even eliminate the filibuster, and pass the continuing resolution to reopen the government with a simple majority. Why aren’t they doing this? Because they want to secure Democratic votes for it—spreading the blame for their deeply unpopular policy changes across both parties. (Oh, and they’re also falsely claiming that Democrats want to provide free healthcare for undocumented immigrants, when you must be a citizen to receive government benefits. Are we surprised?)
When it comes to women’s healthcare, it’s striking to me that some of the battles we’re fighting today are the same ones we were fighting 50 years ago, when Ms. was first founded. Friday marked the 48th anniversary of the death of Rosie Jiménez—a 27-year-old mother, college student and aspiring teacher in McAllen, Texas, who died from complications following an illegal abortion, after being denied Medicaid coverage. She was forced to seek out a back-alley abortion due to the Hyde Amendment’s block on the use of federal funds for abortion—a block that still stands.
And today, the systems that killed Jiménez are set up to take even more lives. Thanks to the Republican “Big Beautiful” budget, women who are covered by Medicaid are forced to pay out-of-pocket if they seek healthcare at most reproductive health clinics. The denial of Medicaid to Planned Parenthood has already led multiple clinics to close their doors, and will likely close more.
Regardless of how much the Republicans try to restrict and criminalize abortion—whether through state-level bans or in the Republican budget bill—the truth remains that abortion is popular with Americans across the board. Citizen-led ballot measures to guarantee access to abortion have passed decisively in blue and red states alike.
That’s why when public figures like New York Times columnist Ezra Klein argue that Democrats need to compromise, and run antiabortion candidates, it’s not just inaccurate—it’s dangerous. A democratic concession in this arena would be a stupid political move, and will only lead to further restriction of abortion in this country—which will in turn lead to more unnecessary deaths of women.
A view of the U.S. Capitol on Oct. 4, 2025. During the shutdown, non-essential government services are halted, and hundreds of thousands of federal employees face furloughs amid the political standoff. (Mehmet Eser / Middle East Images via AFP and Getty Images)
Amidst all the bad, here’s something to celebrate: Last week, the FDA quietly approved a new generic version of the abortion medication mifepristone. This move will increase the medication’s availability in a moment when it is under direct attack. Medication abortion accounts for nearly two-thirds of abortions performed in the U.S.—and at a time when it’s harder and harder to access surgical abortions, seeing medication abortion become more accessible gives me hope.