Reproductive Justice and Women’s Health at the Supreme Court in 2023-24

Despite the Supreme Court’s assurances in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health that it was settling the controversy over the right to abortion by sending the issue back to state legislatures, the decision unleashed multiple legal issues related to access to reproductive health care. The Court heard two abortion-related cases in its 2023-2024 term, and in both did not address the underlying issue, but instead dismissed the cases on procedural grounds. The Court also decided U.S. v. Rahimi, in which it upheld a federal law prohibiting domestic abusers from possessing firearms – a case with profound implications for women’s health and safety. This talk will describe the Court’s decisions in these cases, the likelihood of future litigation related to access to reproductive health care, and what the outcome of the 2024 election could mean for reproductive justice and women’s health and safety.

Elizabeth Tobin-Tyler, JD, MA, is Associate Professor of Health Services, Policy and Practice at the Brown University School of Public Health and of Family Medicine and Medical Science at the Alpert Medical School. She teaches in the areas of health policy, health justice, public health law and ethics, and reproductive rights and justice. Her research and writing focus on the structural and legal determinants of health and health inequity, public health law and policy, reproductive justice, maternal and child health disparities, domestic violence, poverty and social safety nets, and interprofessional health justice education.

Free and open to the public. Lunch included; RSVP required.

This talk is brought to you by the Pembroke Center Public Health Collaborative; the School of Public Health; and the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs.

Host or Publisher Pembroke Center, Brown University