Almost four years ago, access to medicated abortion got easier for California college students — but only at certain schools. University of California and California State University campuses had to offer abortion pills, which is the most common way clinics provide abortions. But community colleges were not included.
Last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 2540, which extends the same access to community colleges.
“ It means safety, comfort for students,” said Angelica Campos, a student organizer at City College of San Francisco. “It’s definitely time-saving, lifesaving. And then also it provides a sense of emotional safety.”
Campos helped celebrate the bill's passage last week at CCSF along with Assembly Member Catherine Stefani, who championed the bill. Stefani highlighted that community college students are some of the most diverse in the state.
“They are more likely to come from low income families, to be the first in their families to attend college, and to be balancing their education with jobs and family responsibilities,” said Stefani.
This means they often also face higher barriers to accessing healthcare. Community college students like Campos also played an important role in getting this passed.
“We definitely got a lot of pushback,” she said, adding it was especially true in rural areas, where community colleges are often the only option for higher education. “ Half of it might be stigma about abortion services, and then half of it is concern of: how the heck are we gonna make this thing happen?”
Some community colleges don’t have clinics. But the cost of putting these programs in place will depend on the strategy each school takes. Some may build new health centers, but others could simply use telehealth, or work with off-campus partners to write the prescriptions.
Schools have until 2029 to start offering the pills.
