Many have been closely following updates regarding the Supreme Court’s recent debate on Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that protected a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion during the first 2 trimesters of pregnancy.
Protesters outside the Supreme Court ©Variety
On June 24th, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, giving “individual states the power to set their own abortion laws” (CNBC). In response to the Court’s decision, several companies — including Disney — have reached out to their employees, promising to cover the cost of travel if the employees must go to a different state to access an abortion.
With the ability to choose to have an abortion no longer considered a constitutional right, “almost half the states are expected to outlaw or severely restrict abortion” (CNBC). Some states will likely keep more liberal legislation regarding abortion. That means that women may need to travel to another state in order to access family planning and reproductive care.
Several companies — such as Disney, Netflix, Paramount, Comcast, Meta, and Sony — have reached out to their employees to confirm they “will cover the travel costs for employees seeking abortions,” according to Variety.
Walt Disney Company Headquarters ©LA Times
Disney’s message to their employees on Friday said “they recognize the ‘impact’ of the Supreme Court’s decision and ‘remain committed to providing comprehensive access to quality and affordable care’ for all Disney employees and their families, which includes family planning and reproductive care, ‘no matter where they live’” (Variety).
Walt Disney Company Logo ©Disney
Disney employees will have a travel benefit that includes “affordable coverage for receiving similar levels of care in another location” if they are not able to get the care they need where they live.
Netflix is offering travel reimbursement coverage “for full-time U.S. employees and their dependents who need to travel for cancer treatment, transplants, gender-affirming care, or abortion.” Comcast, Meta, Paramount, and Sony all have similar plans for employees.
©Netflix
This is a developing story, and we will continue to update as more information is released.
Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!
The post NEWS: Disney Makes Statement on Employee Abortion Access Following Roe v. Wade Decision first appeared on the disney food blog.