Following the bombshell overturning of Roe v. Wade on Friday, companies are turning out in droves to cover out-of-state costs for women seeking abortions.
Dick’s Sporting Goods, Apple, JPMorgan, Alaska Airlines, Amazon, Disney, and Citigroup are just a few major corporations standing in solidarity with women. Following the nationwide abolition of abortion, nearly half of the states will enact an immediate abortion ban. Kentucky, Louisiana, and South Dakota have “trigger bans” that went into effect as soon as the almost 50-year-old ruling was overturned. In Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced that local prosecutors can now start enforcing the state’s abortion ban that was passed before the Roe ruling. This will make seeking an abortion punishable by law in some cases.
The national ban sparked outrage from women’s rights groups, who have pointed out instances where women need abortions, including pregnancies stemming from sexual assault and life-threatening illnesses. Nevertheless, the Senate has determined that women should no longer have the right to choose.
Despite the ruling, corporations nationwide have allocated funds for any woman seeking an abortion out-of-state. Dick’s will designate up to $4,000 in travel expense reimbursement for employees who live in an area where abortions are illegal.
In May, Sara Kelly, Starbucks acting executive vice president of partner resources, said in a memo to employees that “regardless of what the Supreme Court ends up deciding,” the company would still assist with out-of-state costs related to the procedure. Her announcement came when the Supreme Court was already in talks to overturn the ruling.
Other companies offering abortion assistance are Gucci, GoDaddy, Tesla, Microsoft, Levi Strauss & Co., and Bloomberg, Bumble, amongst others. More corporations are expected to follow suit in the coming weeks.
