Skip to contentNational Women's Law Center

Gretchen Borchelt, Senior Counsel & Director of State Reproductive Health Policy

Gretchen Borchelt is Senior Counsel and Director of State Reproductive Health Policy at the National Women’s Law Center. She oversees the Center’s state-based legal and policy efforts to protect and expand women’s access to reproductive health care. Gretchen also works on a range of issues as part of the Center’s Health and Reproductive Rights Team, including health care law implementation, access to contraception, refusals to provide health care, and judicial nominations. Previously, she worked at Physicians for Human Rights and was a Women’s Law and Public Policy Fellow at the National Partnership for Women and Families. Gretchen is a graduate of Columbia Law School and the University of Virginia.

My Take

Alabama Legislators Want to Let Bosses Make Your Reproductive Health Care Decisions

Posted by Gretchen Borchelt, Senior Counsel & Director of State Reproductive Health Policy | Posted on: February 07, 2013 at 03:23 pm

Alabama politicians will be voting on whether to allow your boss to make your reproductive health care decisions. H.B. 108 was introduced just last week and voted out of committee yesterday without a public hearing. It’s moving to the House floor for a vote as early as today. Alabama politicians want to allow bosses to use their religion to discriminate against the 637,666 Alabama women who get health insurance through their job or their spouse’s job.

(For a flavor of the kinds of bosses who claim their religious beliefs should dictate what medical care someone can receive, check out Jezebel’s recent examination of the businesses in the 18 for-profit cases against the federal contraceptive coverage benefit.)

Read more...

Roe and Me at 40: Rough around the Edges but Still Fundamentally the Same

Posted by Gretchen Borchelt, Senior Counsel & Director of State Reproductive Health Policy | Posted on: January 22, 2013 at 05:18 pm

Happy birthday Roe! If you’re turning 40 this year, it means that I am too. Given that we share this significant milestone, let’s take a look back at how we’ve fared over the last 40 years. Both of us are a little worse for wear. The Supreme Court weakened you in subsequent decisions. Your opponents have repeatedly chipped away at you – passing new restrictions on abortion and thinking up creative new ways to attack you.

As for me, well, let’s just say that I think I’ve held up pretty well for someone who grew up in the pre-sunscreen era and has two kids under the age of 4. Still, there’s no doubt I have more wrinkles, more aches and pains, and less flexibility than I used to.

Read more...

Virginia Legislators Refuse to Listen to Women, Again

Posted by Gretchen Borchelt, Senior Counsel & Director of State Reproductive Health Policy | Posted on: January 18, 2013 at 12:38 pm

Remember how Virginia became a national laughingstock last year and “transvaginal ultrasound” became a new buzz word? Remember how Virginia women let it be known that they didn’t want their legislators forcing them to undergo medically unnecessary and physically invasive ultrasounds? Remember how Virginia politicians didn’t listen – they passed a mandatory ultrasound law anyway? Well, Virginia politicians had a chance to right their wrong, and show that they listen to and respect women. A Virginia state senator introduced a bill last week to repeal the ultrasound requirement. And just a week later, a Republican committee has killed the bill.

Read more...

Ho Ho Horror! State Politicians Don't Let the Holidays Stop Their Attacks on Women's Reproductive Health

Posted by Gretchen Borchelt, Senior Counsel & Director of State Reproductive Health Policy | Posted on: January 04, 2013 at 04:45 pm

Think the holidays were just a time for joy, merry making, and generosity? Think again. This holiday season, state politicians continued their attacks on women's reproductive health. Here's a wrap up of from the past 2 weeks.

Importantly, the holidays also brought a few victories for women's reproductive health:

Read more...

Letting Women Die, Michigan?

Posted by Gretchen Borchelt, Senior Counsel & Director of State Reproductive Health Policy | Posted on: December 12, 2012 at 10:50 am

Remember the terribly tragic story of Savita Halappanavar who was refused an abortion at a hospital in Ireland, and died because of it? Some legislators in Michigan evidently think refusing abortion in such cases is not only acceptable, but should not even bring any punishment on the hospital. 

Michigan Senate Bill 975 passed the Senate last week – when they locked the public out of the state capitol – and is scheduled to be considered in a House committee this morning. It would allow a hospital to let a pregnant woman die, without risking its license or a lawsuit or even a fine.

Read more...