Dr. Sarah Wallett doesn’t know how, or if, her patients’ access to abortion and gender-affirming care will be impacted by President Donald Trump’s administration.
But Wallett, the chief medical operating officer at Planned Parenthood of Michigan, knows they’re worried. And so is she. “I feel like I'm waiting here a little bit anxiously, like many others, to kind of see what the next few days bring.”
On Monday, President Trump promised to roll back protections for transgender people, including implementing a policy recognizing only two sexes: male and female. Under the orders, federal taxpayer money could not be used to fund “transition services,” according to the Associated Press.
Some states, including Michigan, have covered gender-affirming care under Medicaid. And Michigan’s civil rights law was expanded in 2023 to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity or expression.
“The incoming Trump administration has indicated that trans and gender diverse people will particularly be under attack, and they are very fearful that they won't be able to get their medications in the future,” Wallet said Monday.
“So we've spent a lot of time over the last two months providing what reassurance we can, continuing to support them in getting their health care and planning for what could happen.”
Michigan voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2022 protecting broad reproductive rights, including access to abortion and contraception. But changes at the federal level could impact Michiganders, especially if the Trump administration moves to restrict access to abortion pills. Medication abortions represent more than half of all abortions in Michigan, and more than 60% nationally.
“So attempts to reverse the FDA approval of mifepristone, [and] there's also been talk about using the 1873 Comstock Act to ban mifepristone from being sent through the mail, which would create devastating barriers to care,” Wallet said.
The Comstock Act defines certain abortion-related materials as obscene and bars the postal service from carrying them.
Last month, Trump was asked by Time if he would vow that the FDA would not do anything to limit access to abortion pills. Initially Trump responded, “We’re going to take a look at all of that,” then said he was “against stopping [abortion pills] ... so I don't see any reason why it changed, but somebody could come up with something that, you know, this horrible thing.”
Finally, when pressed whether he was committed to making sure that the FDA “does not strip [women’s] ability to access abortion pills,” Trump responded, “That would be my commitment. Yeah, it's always been my commitment.”
Since the election, appointments for long-acting contraception like IUDs soared 77% in the two weeks following Trump’s victory, according to Planned Parenthood of Michigan. Patients are also asking Wallett if they should stock up on birth control pills, Plan B, or abortion pills, she said.
“I tell them that Planned Parenthood will be here to help them access services,” Wallett said. “But these are unprecedented times. And if they feel more comfortable having a supply available, we support them in that. And I wish I could say something more reassuring … yet I can't tell them that I can predict the future.”
Meanwhile, the number of out-of-state patients coming to Michigan for abortions “remains steady at triple the number we saw before the Dobbs decision,” a PPMI spokesperson said Monday via email. In Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and ended federal abortion rights protections.
“Prior to Dobbs, we were providing abortions for just over 600 out-of-state patients per year; now, we’re providing about 1,700," Planned Parenthood of Michigan said.
