President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Friday, which counteracts the Supreme Court’s decision to eliminate the constitutional right to abortion.
Vice President Kamala Harris and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra joined Biden in signing the executive order. Biden said the Supreme Court’s decision was "terrible, extreme and totally wrong."
In June, the Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to abortion that had been in place since 1973. The high court then ruled in favor of Jane Roe, granting reproductive freedom and establishing the constitutional right to abortion.
The lawsuit was filed in Texas, one of the most conservative states in the country and usually dominated by Republican ideology, against District Attorney Henry Wade. The litigation is known as Roe vs. Wade.
Biden’s executive order reinforced "access to abortion and contraceptives”. He claimed that the Supreme Court’s decision was "very dangerous" to women and their right to choose freely between conception or contraception.
In a press conference, Biden said that the Executive Order seeks to protect access to services and women's reproductive health care, which had been annulled by the determination of the Supreme Court.
The Executive Order aims to safeguard access to reproductive health services, including abortion and contraception, protect the privacy of patients and their access to accurate information, promote the safety of patients, providers, and clinics, and coordinate the implementation of federal efforts to protect reproductive rights and access to health care.