NSGC’s reproductive healthcare efforts have focused on strategically shaping our organizational response to state and federal restrictions on reproductive freedom, the Dobbs decision and impacts to genetic counselor scope of practice.

The NSGC Board of Directors formalized the Reproductive Healthcare Workgroup in 2022, as a continuation of the work carried out by the Reproductive Access, Freedom and Justice Task Force (2021-2022). The two objectives for the workgroup included: 1) establishing formal connections with other healthcare provider organizations working in the reproductive healthcare space to understand how they are responding to current legislative restrictions and to identify opportunities to collaborate to support our respective members and their patients; and 2) providing subject matter expertise to NSGC’s committees as they were implementing initiatives related to impacts to reproductive freedom, especially as related to genetic counselor scope of practice.

The ultimate goal of the Board of Directors was to integrate the focus on reproductive healthcare into the ongoing work of NSGC in a sustainable way. NSGC has now successfully incorporated this work into standing initiatives of committees and special interest groups (SIGs). There are also ongoing efforts to establish partnerships with other professional organizations to work together on these issues. 

There are numerous examples of how this work is being carried out by NSGC committees and SIGs. The Education Committee implemented a Community Conversation last year on the topic of reproductive justice and the intersection with the disability community, and recently hosted a Community Conversation focused on reproductive justice beyond the prenatal clinic. The Research, Quality, and Outcomes (RQO) Committee has put out an Request for Proposal (RFP) for funding to support research into the impact of reproductive healthcare legislation on genetic counselor scope of practice and ability to work with prenatal patients and their families. The Access and Service Delivery Committee is finalizing their audit of impacts of state legislation related to reproductive healthcare on genetic counselor scope of practice and will recommend some next steps for how NSGC can use that information. Through these efforts many NSGC member volunteers have engaged in this important work, which is now continuing in these respective committees.

To bolster external collaborative efforts, NSGC has joined as a member of the Clinician Abortion & Reproductive Health Access (CARA) Taskforce – a coalition of clinical professional societies with a shared goal of protecting and expanding access to reproductive health care services, including abortion, across the United States through government advocacy. Formed in 2022, CARA strives to amplify advocacy efforts of individual member organizations, develop joint advocacy initiatives, connect state advocates and serve as a hub for information and resource sharing. As the 2024 NSGC representatives to the CARA Taskforce, Ashley Svenson and Bridget Winchester provide regular updates to the NSGC Board of Directors about CARA’s work and how NSGC and its members can support the coalition’s efforts through partnership or amplification of the work being done by other organizations. For example, NSGC recently co-signed a letter with six other organizations urging the Supreme Court to protect access to mifepristone. Statement available here.

These efforts have already enabled more engagement from members who are passionate about abortion access and reproductive freedoms and NSGC will continue to provide a platform for internal conversations and external action. Identifying opportunities to get involved and share the unique genetic counselor perspective at the state and national level has allowed for our challenging but rewarding work to begin in earnest. We encourage all members who are interested in reproductive advocacy to explore these expanding opportunities by joining SIGs, applying to be committee members and watching NSGC newsletters for calls for volunteers. If you would like to learn more about the volunteer opportunities that are available within NSGC, please visit https://www.nsgc.org/Members/Volunteer.

 

For additional resources related to Reproductive Access, Freedom & Justice please visit https://www.nsgc.org/POLICY/Reproductive-Access-Freedom-and-Justice-Resources.

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