Oregon’s sweeping abortion coverage law just hit a courtroom speed bump, and it happened in Eugene.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Mustafa T. Kasubhai ruled from the bench that Oregon’s Reproductive Health Equity Act cannot be enforced against Oregon Right to Life, at least for now. The temporary win for the Keizer-based pro-life group means the state’s insurance mandate for abortion and contraceptive care is on hold for that one employer while the court works out the details of a formal order.
Kasubhai said he would issue a written opinion and ordered more briefing on how far any injunction should go, according to OPB. He also signaled that, at least for now, the ruling appears limited to Oregon Right to Life, the organization that brought the lawsuit.
What the Law Requires
Passed in 2017, Oregon’s Reproductive Health Equity Act requires most state-regulated health plans to cover a broad list of reproductive services, including contraception and abortion, with no out-of-pocket costs for patients. As detailed by the Oregon Division of Financial Regulation, the mandate applies to policies issued, renewed or modified on or after Jan. 1, 2019, and it includes only narrow exemptions for certain religious employers.
A Long-Running Legal Fight
Oregon Right to Life took state regulators to court in 2023, arguing that being forced to provide coverage for services it opposes violates its First Amendment rights and that the nonprofit should not have to comply with the law’s coverage rules. The Ninth Circuit breathed new life into parts of the case last year, sending it back to the trial court for more review, a procedural back-and-forth laid out by Courthouse News Service.
Officials Push Back
State leaders wasted little time blasting the decision.
Governor Tina Kotek said she was “proud to champion” the Reproductive Health Equity Act and criticized the ruling, arguing that “health care decisions belong to individuals, not employers, not politicians, and not the courts,” according to KPTV. The office of Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said it will keep defending the law and is weighing an appeal, while reproductive-health advocates warned the ruling could make it tougher for some Oregonians to maintain coverage they currently count on.
Legal and Practical Effects
For everyone else, state officials say nothing changes yet. Coverage requirements for other employers remain in place while the court issues a written opinion and finalizes any injunction, OPB reported.
Still, legal observers note that if Kasubhai’s written decision or a later preliminary injunction reaches beyond Oregon Right to Life, it could open the door to more religious exemptions from employer-provided health plans, a shift that would matter to patients who rely on no-cost reproductive care.
What’s Next
Kasubhai has ordered additional briefing on the exact remedies Oregon Right to Life is asking for, and lawyers on both sides now have to spell out what, precisely, an injunction should cover.
The case, filed in 2023 under number 6:23-cv-01282, is listed on the federal docket and can be tracked through Justia, where past filings and any future hearing dates are posted.
