Some of the largest corporations in the United States spoke out on the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, signaling that they will continue to support women who want to get abortions.
The Walt Disney Company, Facebook parent Meta and America’s largest banks are among the companies that said they will reimburse employees who must travel out of state for the procedure.
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When a draft opinion by Justice Samuel Alito was leaked to Politico last month, some companies said they would cover travel costs or they already had similar policies in place. But those same companies, plus others, doubled down on their stance since Friday’s ruling that ends the nation’s constitutional protections for abortion.
This state has a trigger law, meaning Texas will automatically ban abortions within 30 days of the SCOTUS ruling, except in cases where pregnancy is life-threatening or has the potential to cause serious injury.
The overturning of the landmark court ruling is likely to lead to abortion bans in roughly half the states. In Texas, women will likely have to travel long distances for legal and safe abortions.
The Associated Press reported that some Republican lawmakers want to punish companies that help Texas women with abortion access, but it’s unclear if that idea will have support when the Legislature meets next year.
So far, these are some of the big corporations that have spoken out against the ban on abortions:
Disney
In a statement to The Washington Post, Disney said the “family planning” health benefit includes decisions related to pregnancies.
“We have communicated directly with our employees today that we recognize the impact of the ruling and that we remain committed to providing comprehensive access to quality and affordable care for all of our employees, cast members and their families, including family planning and reproductive care, no matter where they live,” Disney said in the statement.
Meta
The parent company of Facebook and Instagram told employees Friday that it would reimburse travel expenses “to the extent permitted by law,” according to The New York Times. Sheryl Sandberg, Meta’s chief operating officer, called the ruling “a huge setback” in a Facebook post. “The Supreme Court’s ruling jeopardizes the health and the lives of millions of girls and women across the country,” she said.
Netflix
The streaming company told Deadline that its health insurance plans already covered travel costs for employees and their dependents seeking abortions and other treatments or procedures.
Apple
The company told CNBC that employee benefits that cover out-of-state travel for medical care have been in place for more than 10 years. Medical care includes abortions.
Starbucks
The coffee chain said it will cover travel expenses for abortions if a provider is not available in the employee’s state or within 100 miles of their home, according to the Seattle Times.
Lyft, Uber, DoorDash
The rideshare and delivery companies previously announced that they would cover travel costs for Texans after the state recently banned most abortions for women. On Friday, the companies said that their policies apply to employees across the nation, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Yelp
The company previously announced that it would cover expenses for employees and their spouses who need to travel out of state for the procedure, the New York Times reported.
Patagonia
The outdoor clothing maker said it supports abortion care and went so far as to post on LinkedIn Friday that it would provide “training and bail for those who peacefully protest for reproductive justice” and time off to vote.
Patagonia has long supported abortion care, working parents, and families, and we’ll continue to do so. https://t.co/CDQM2IwjMq
— Patagonia (@patagonia) June 24, 2022
America’s banks
Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley, American Express, Citigroup Inc., and Deutsche Bank AG said they will pay for employees to travel for abortions under their health plans, according to Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal.
According to Bloomberg, American Express’ health plans already covered abortions and travel expenses for the procedure, if needed.
The benefit at JPMorgan, Goldman, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America will go into effect on July 1, according to media reports.
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