September 24, 2023

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For splendid leisure

Starbucks just became the latest company to cover employees’ abortion travel costs. Here are the companies that have pledged to do the same.

6 min read

The initial corporate response to the news that the Supreme Court may be preparing to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that made access to an abortion a constitutional right, was initially muted from many major U.S. companies.

But some of the country’s biggest corporations have now said that they will cover the costs of employees who need to travel to get an abortion. On Monday, Starbucks Corp. became the latest company to pledge to pay for employees who need to travel more than 100 miles to get an abortion, joining others like Amazon, Microsoft and Apple.

If Roe v. Wade is overturned, many states will impose stronger restrictions on who’s eligible for an abortion, or ban the procedure altogether. There are at least 13 states that have trigger laws in place that would automatically outlaw abortions the moment Roe v. Wade is officially overturned.

That number could be growing. On Sunday, Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts said he will soon call for a special session of his state’s legislature to ban abortions if Roe v. Wade is overturned, even in the case of rape or incest.

While abortion activists say covering travel costs is just one of several steps companies can take to help support the reproductive rights of their employees, it’s an important one.

“It is a great thing that companies are willing to do this, and I think it really defines what social responsibility for companies looks like,” Christian Nunes, president of the National Organization for Women, told Fortune last week.

Here are the companies that have pledged to cover abortion-related travel costs.

Starbucks

Starbucks announced on Monday that it will begin covering travel expenses for employees seeking abortions or gender-affirming procedures.

“We are committed to ensuring that our partners have access to quality healthcare regardless of where they live or what they believe,” the company said in a statement announcing the expanded healthcare coverage. “Partners enrolled in Starbucks healthcare will be offered reimbursement for eligible travel expenses when accessing abortion or gender-affirming procedures when those services are not available within 100 miles of a partner’s home.”

Microsoft

In a statement last week, Microsoft said it will support employees and their enrolled dependents in accessing critical health care, including abortion services and gender-affirming care.

“This support is being extended to include travel expense assistance for these and other medical services where access to care is limited in availability in an employee’s home geographic region.”

Amazon

Amazon was one of the first companies to announce it would cover travel costs for people seeing abortions. On May 3, the company said it will reimburse employees up to $4,000 annually when they’re forced to travel over 100 miles to obtain an abortion other medical treatments.

Amazon’s updated policy is retroactive from Jan. 1 and also covers long-term health issues as well as substance abuse disorders, according to a report from Reuters.

Apple

Apple announced it was expanding its existing benefits programs to include travel reimbursements for employees seeking abortion care that may not be available in their state.

Last September, CEO Tim Cook said at an all-staff meeting that the company was looking into whether it could help financially support the legal fight against a restrictive abortion law in Texas, according to The New York Times

Cook reportedly told employees then that the company’s medical insurance policy would pay for Apple workers in Texas to leave the state for an abortion. This applies to other Apple employees in every state.

Tesla

Like Apple, Tesla announced earlier this month that it was expanding its health insurance offering to include “travel and lodging support for those who may need to seek healthcare services that are unavailable in their home state,” including abortions.

The expanded offering has been in place since last year, but it wasn’t until this month that the news became public after the company released its 2021 impact report.

The company moved its headquarters to Austin, Texas last year, home to some of the most restrictive abortion access in the country.

Citigroup

Citigroup announced in a proxy filing in March that “beginning in 2022 we provide travel benefits to facilitate access to adequate resources” in response to “changes in reproductive health-care laws in certain states in the U.S.”

Citigroup’s policy will cover expenses including airfare and lodging for employees who must leave states, including Texas, to receive the procedure.

Other major banks, like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, are reportedly considering making similar pledges, though neither has done so yet.

Yelp

In April, Yelp announced that it would cover expenses for employees and their spouses who need to travel out of state for abortion care. Like Amazon and Apple, Yelp’s announcement came in the wake of Texas passing its restrictive abortion law.

“The ability to control your reproductive health, and whether or when you want to extend your family, is absolutely fundamental to being able to be successful in the workplace,” Miriam Warren, the company’s chief diversity officer, told The New York Times last month.

Match

The parent company of a plethora of dating apps, including Tinder, OkCupid and Hinge, Dallas-based Match Group’s CEO Shar Dubey said last month she was creating a fund for Texas-based employees who needed to leave the state for reproductive healthcare.

“I’m not speaking about this as the CEO of a company,” Dubey, who is stepping down as CEO at the end of the month, said at the time. “I’m speaking about this personally, as a mother and a woman who has fervently cared about women’s rights, including the very fundamental right of choice over her body.”

Bumble

Bumble is another Texas-based company that announced it would support employees traveling out of state to receive reproductive care after Texas passed restrictive abortion laws last September.

After the Supreme Court decision leaked, Bumble continued its pledge to support its employees.

“We are dismayed by the rumors of the Supreme Court decision that was leaked last night,” a Bumble spokesperson told Business Insider last week. “At Bumble, we believe strongly in women’s right to choose and exercise complete control over their bodies…The health and safety of our team is our utmost priority and that includes covering access to abortion care. We will continue to partner with organizations that work to provide reproductive access to all.”

Levi Strauss 

The California-based jeans company announced in early May it will reimburse abortion-related travel expenses for both its full- and part-time employees.

​​”Given what is at stake, business leaders need to make their voices heard and act to protect the health and well-being of our employees. That means protecting reproductive rights,” the company said in a statement at the time.

Lyft

After Oklahoma and Texas passed anti-abortion laws, Lyft announced in April that it would similarly cover the cost of employees needing to travel to receive abortion care.

“For Lyft employees enrolled in our U.S. medical benefits, which include coverage for elective abortion, we’ll cover the travel costs if these laws require travel outside of Texas and Oklahoma to find a provider,” the company said in a statement.

In addition to covering travel fees for employees seeking abortion care, Lyft also announced last Septmeber they would cover the legal fees of drivers sued for transporting passengers to abortion providers.

Uber 

Like Lyft, Uber announced in April it would cover the travel costs of abortion-seeking employees. The company also similarly announced last September that it would cover legal fees for drivers if they are sued for driving passengers on their way to receive an abortion.“Drivers shouldn’t be put at risk for getting people where they want to go. Team @Uber is in too and will cover legal fees in the same way,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in a Tweet announcing that the company would enact similar legal fee coverage as Lyft.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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