NIRH has worked with WV FREE for many years to improve abortion access in West Virginia.
In 2011, WV FREE led a successful effort to pass an insurance exchange bill without any reproductive health care restrictions, including restrictions on abortion coverage. With our support, their work focused on legislative officials, regulatory officials, and the media to ensure that women did not lose access to reproductive health coverage with the creation of the exchange.
West Virginia is home to only one abortion clinic, in Charleston, and yet has more than 25 crisis pregnancy centers (CPCs), anti-abortion fake clinics that masquerade as medical facilities to deceive and prevent people from obtaining abortion care. To ensure that community members have access to reliable resources for health care, NIRH worked with WV FREE in 2018 on a multi-city initiative in Charleston, Huntington, and Morgantown, engaging supporters and local leaders in efforts such as public awareness campaigns on the threats posed by CPCs and information on accessing comprehensive reproductive health care.