By Elizabeth Ling, Catherine Guichardo, Noran Elzarka, Limayli Huguet, Imani Davis, Jaqueline Mejía-Cuéllar, Kylee Sunderlin, Sara Ainsworth
In 2024, we released our first Helpline Report, which captured the fear, confusion, and barriers to care that people faced after Dobbs. Two years and thousands of calls later, those concerns have multiplied under the Trump administration.
People call our Helpline with versions of the same questions. Can I get abortion pills? Will I get in trouble for helping someone I love? How do I do this safely?
What has changed is that the Trump administration has emboldened anti-abortion activists and lawmakers to try new strategies to restrict access and sow fear and confusion.
The patterns we hear are hard to miss. Pregnancy criminalization, family separation, and immigration enforcement are increasingly being used to control and punish people for their reproductive decisions. Even though self-managed abortion is not a crime in any state except Nevada, what the law says and what happens in reality can be very different.
Our Helpline exists to help people navigate that gap. The 2026 Helpline Report covers the following findings:
- Self-managed abortion and legal concerns remain the number one reason people call us.
- AI is fueling misinformation and fear about people’s legal rights.
- An increasing number of families need legal support because the family policing system is investigating them after someone had an abortion.
- People with vulnerable immigration statuses are being put at risk of ICE detention and family separation when seeking reproductive care.
- Young people are facing intensifying barriers to accessing abortion.
- Reproductive coercion is being used as a tool of intimate partner violence.
This report is for all of us. Whether you’ve spent years organizing against reproductive oppression, or you’re new to seeing pregnancy criminalization trends, or you’ve personally been surveilled and punished for your pregnancy outcome. We all need to be aware of the conditions we’re facing and the resources available to help match this moment.
The reality we want is one in which everyone can exercise their right to self-determination without fear or violence. Until then, we’re not going anywhere.
→ Read the 2026 Helpline Callers at a Glance summary
→ Read the full 2026 Repro Legal Helpline Report
Ways to Take Action
Share the Repro Legal Helpline with your community
No matter your age or immigration status, we provide legal services about abortion, pregnancy, birth, and parenting. Always free and confidential.
Fund bail
Donate to the Repro Legal Defense Fund to help keep people out of jail. We’re an abortion and pregnancy bail fund that provides financial support for bail and legal fees.
Join the If/When/How Network
If you’re an attorney or advocate, join the free If/When/How Network to put your skills directly toward reproductive justice. You’ll also have opportunities for skills-based training, networking, and keeping up-to-date with the legal landscape across the country.