California is characterized as a most protective state by the Guttmacher Institute.
Abortion is protected up to fetal viability, with exceptions to preserve the life or health of the pregnant woman. California has a shield law protecting abortion providers from investigations or prosecution by other states, and the state constitution protects the right to an abortion.
In the US, people who are not white and people with low incomes are more likely to experience barriers to reproductive health care access.
IN THIS STATE
As of 2024, 8.4 million women are of reproductive age in California.
- 10.4 percent are low income (lower than the national average)
- 15.3 percent are likely eligible for Medicaid because their income is at or below 138 percent of the federal poverty level (lower than the national average)
- 72.0 percent are nonwhite (higher than the national average), and Hispanic women are the largest nonwhite group (44.1 percent; higher than the national average)
- 7.1 percent are uninsured (lower than the national average)
California has expanded Medicaid and thus provides coverage to adults without dependent children who have incomes up to 138 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL) and pregnant women with incomes up to 322 percent of FPL. The state has extended pregnancy-related Medicaid coverage up to 12 months postpartum. California is using state funds to cover abortion for Medicaid beneficiaries, and it covers family planning services for people not otherwise eligible for Medicaid who have incomes up to 205 percent of FPL.
Accessing Abortion Care
In 2026, 178 clinics provide abortions in California, up from 173 clinics in 2020. This number excludes hospitals and telehealth providers.
Crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs) are organizations—often operated by anti-abortion, nonmedical, and/or religiously affiliated groups—that aim to deter people from certain reproductive health care services, including abortion and some contraceptive methods. In 2025, there were 145 CPCs in California.
California does not have any of the following patient restrictions on abortion access:
California does not have any of the following abortion provider restrictions:
Accessing Contraceptive Care
According to Power to Decide, around 2.4 million women of reproductive age in California live in contraceptive access gaps, putting them at increased risk of a mistimed or unintended pregnancy.
California has the following protections for contraception access:
What to Watch For
In 2022, California voters passed Proposition 1, which amended the state constitution to “expressly include existing rights to reproductive freedom—such as the right to choose whether or not to have an abortion.” Since that time, the state legislature has passed several bills to protect access to abortion care in the state, including strengthening the state’s safe haven status for patients and providers, protecting reproductive health information, and expanding the reproductive health care workforce.
In September 2025, California passed laws that allow pharmacists to fill prescriptions for medication abortion without listing patients’ or providers’ names and that remove barriers to over-the-counter contraceptives for Medi-Cal enrollees. In 2026, California continued to introduce bills to strengthen abortion access, including bills that would expand medication abortion access at community college health centers, allow advanced practice clinicians to provide abortion care beyond the first trimester of pregnancy, and strengthen protections for people who access, administer, or manufacture medication abortion.
In November 2026, California will elect a new governor. Democratic candidate Xavier Becerra’s campaign website states that if elected, he would issue an executive order that would “direct state agencies to protect access to essential, medically appropriate health services from federal restrictions, including reproductive care and health care for immigrant communities, and ensure uninterrupted, equitable access to contraception, abortion, and maternal health support.” Republican candidate Steve Hilton has not stated his platform related to abortion or reproductive health on his campaign website. In the primary, Hilton said that if elected, he would honor a request to extradite a California health care provider who prescribed abortion medication to a Louisiana resident—a statement he later reversed.
Last updated: September 2026
