'We Have Your Back': California Launches Online Hub for Abortion Resources

California launched a publicly funded website on Tuesday to help people seeking abortions locate the state’s services, listing clinics, linking to financial help for travel and lodging and letting teenagers in other states know they don’t need their parents’ permission to get an abortion in the state.

The website is part of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pledge to make California a sanctuary for patients seeking abortions now that the U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that said states could not ban abortion.

The state budget includes $200 million to strengthen access to abortion in California, including money to build a website promoting the state’s abortion services. That website went live on Tuesday, following an announcement from Newsom.

“Abortion is legal, safe and accessible here in California — whether or not you live here, know that we have your back,” Newsom said in a news release.

The website — abortion.ca.gov — includes information on different types of abortion and how to get one. The site has sections devoted to people who live outside California and immigrants who are living in the country without legal permission, saying federal policies keep immigration officials away from health care facilities.

The site includes an interactive map showing the location of 166 abortion clinics statewide. Users can click to see an entire map, or they can enter a city and get a list of clinics nearby. The site also notes that people who live in California might be able to get abortion medication by mail, forgoing the need to visit a clinic.

Anti-abortion-rights advocates have lamented the use of public funds to boost such services, arguing California has a myriad of other problems more deserving of public funding. But polls show a majority of California’s voters support abortion rights, as do the state’s predominantly Democratic lawmakers.

Newsom announced the website the same day Republican U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina introduced a bill that would ban abortions nationwide after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Graham portrayed his bill as a “responsible alternative” to what he says are the permissive laws favored by Democrats.

In a post to his Twitter account, Newsom juxtaposed Graham’s bill with California’s new website, saying Democrats are helping women while Republicans want to control them.

“That’s their agenda,” Newsom tweeted. “CA’s fighting back.”