April 13, 2026 

Reproductive Health Data

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, reproductive health information has become increasingly vulnerable to misuse and surveillance. Research in major medical journals and guidance from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services have highlighted that existing federal privacy frameworks, including HIPAA, contain exceptions that may permit disclosure of reproductive health information to law enforcement requests. Digital sources, such as menstrual tracking apps and geolocation data, often fall outside of medical privacy protections, creating vulnerability. In this evolving environment, the privacy of reproductive health data is inseparable from patient safety, transforming a regulatory question into a fundamental test of clinical ethics and public health. 

Lawmakers in California, New York, and Massachusetts, among others, have enacted laws and consumer privacy protections designed to limit out-of-state data demands, restrict the sale of sensitive health and location data, and strengthen safeguards for reproductive and gender-affirming care. While these efforts reflect growing recognition of the problem, protections remain confined to a small handful of states. Furthermore, the lack of a standardized framework among them creates a chaotic legal patchwork that threatens to have a chilling effect on providers’ ability to carry out evidence-based reproductive care.

In light of these events, Doctors for America affirms that protecting reproductive health data is a core component of patient safety and ethical medical practice. Clinicians have a professional and moral duty to safeguard confidential patient information, particularly when that information carries elevated legal and social risk. Doctors for America calls for health systems to adopt proactive, provider-forward privacy practices that minimize unnecessary data exposure, protect confidential patient-provider communication, and reduce the risk that medical records could be used to penalize patients or clinicians. We urge policymakers to strengthen privacy protections in order to preserve access to care, patient autonomy, and trust in the healthcare system.

‍

###

About Doctors for America:

Doctors for America (DFA) is a national nonprofit that mobilizes over 40,000 physicians and medical trainees to advocate for policies that improve the health of patients and communities. Through advocacy training and action at the state and federal levels, DFA works to expand access to affordable care, strengthen community health and prevention, and advance health justice and equity. We do not accept funding from pharmaceutical, insurance, or for-profit health care entities, ensuring our work remains fiercely independent and patient-centered. DFA puts patients over politics–and over profits. Find out more at doctorsforamerica.org and on X @drsforamerica or Bluesky drsforamerica.bsky.social.