Saratoga, California — Governor Gavin Newsom on Sunday enacted a comprehensive nine-bill legislative package aimed at expanding reproductive and maternal healthcare access across California, broadening clinical authority for mid-level medical practitioners, and securing additional healthcare benefits for military veterans and college students.
Under the newly signed statutes, certified midwives, advanced nurse practitioners, and clinical physician assistants receive expanded authority to perform reproductive health procedures aligned with their professional training and licensure through Assembly Bill 1973, carried by lawmaker Cecilia Aguiar-Curry of Winters. In emergency medical scenarios or during active labor, Assembly Bill 1696, introduced by San Francisco Assemblymember Catherine Stefani, authorizes credentialed nurse-midwives to treat and stabilize patients without direct physician supervision. To expand preventative resources on higher education campuses, Stefani's Assembly Bill 2540 establishes access to medication abortion within student health centers at public community colleges, extending statutory mandates enacted in 2022 that previously applied only to the University of California and California State University systems.
"Freedom means being able to make deeply personal decisions without elected officials inserting themselves in pursuit of a political agenda." — Governor Gavin Newsom
The legislative package also targets maternal wellness and postpartum recovery. Assembly Bill 2160, authored by Assemblymember Celeste Rodriguez, eliminates prior-authorization hurdles for lactation services under Medi-Cal to prevent bureaucratic interruptions in infant nutrition. For emergency responders, the statutes guarantee six months of compensated leave for female firefighters following childbirth, while Assembly Bill 1910, authored by Encinitas lawmaker Tasha Boerner, establishes clinical advisement for postpartum pelvic floor recovery. The package is rounded out by measures including Assembly Bill 1854 from Assemblymember Maggy Krell, Assembly Bill 2531 authored by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, Senate Bill 526 by Pasadena legislator Sasha Renée Pérez, and Senate Bill 1271 carried by Colton Senator Eloise Gómez Reyes, which tracks clinical midwifery preceptorship data.
For Saratoga residents in western Santa Clara County, situated at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains near San Jose, the statewide postsecondary requirements expand student health services within the West Valley-Mission Community College District, whose West Valley College campus serves thousands of area undergraduates.
Sources: Office of Governor Gavin Newsom announcement on reproductive and maternal healthcare legislation (September 27, 2026): https://www.gov.ca.gov/2026/09/27/governor-newsom-signs-new-laws-expanding-californias-nation-leading-reproductive-freedom-and-care/
