Editor’s note: This story was originally published at 1:53 p.m on Jan. 2, 2025 . It was updated at 11:17 a.m. on Feb. 21, 2025 to correct the spelling of Divya Shenoy’s last name.
The day after Donald Trump was elected president in November, patients looking for help swamped local clinics operated by Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C., including one in Gaithersburg, according to Dr. Divya Shenoy, the nonprofit’s director of primary care.
“It’s been astounding, the very day after the election, the number of patients that I saw that day that were so concerned about their reproductive health and care and what we could really reasonably provide,” Shenoy said.
The rush for care is symbolic of the concern shared by reproductive health care advocates in Montgomery County and across the state that changes in leadership at the federal level could be a threat to abortion access locally, even though the procedure is legal in Maryland.
Trump has publicly expressed inconsistent views on abortion. During his 2024 presidential campaign, he said he would veto a proposed 15-week national abortion ban, but he has also expressed support for states that ban abortion, according to PBS News. He also said he was open to restricting access to mifepristone, an abortion pill.
Project 2025, an initiative from conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation that outlines proposed changes for the incoming Trump administration, suggests banning medication abortion nationally and limiting access to other types of abortions, according to the National Women’s Law Center.
Such ideas are inciting fear among women and LGBTQ+ people, Shenoy said.
“I had a patient who had an IUD [intrauterine device] that had just been changed out, like a year ago, who was concerned and wanted to replace it or get a referral for sterilization with a tubal ligation, just out of extreme fear of having an unplanned pregnancy,” Shenoy said. “There’s been a huge increase in the number of people scheduling for IUDs in particular, or implants for birth control.”
Shenoy said the Gaithersburg clinic and other local Planned Parenthood clinics have also been “barely able to keep up” with the number of requests for vasectomy appointments.
Worries about Republican Congress
The growing impact of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson decision that overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, as well as an incoming Republican majority in the U.S. Congress, have also increased anxieties about reproductive freedom even in Maryland, according to providers.
“When Roe v. Wade was overturned, we had dozens of people who weren’t sure what the decision meant for them, and I think we’ll see something similar with the incoming administration. There’s a lot of confusion, there’s a lot of misinformation,” said Lynn McCann-Yeh, co-executive director of the Baltimore Abortion Fund, a nonprofit that helps Marylanders access and afford abortion and other forms of reproductive health care.
While the organization is based in Baltimore, it provides clients across the state with financial and logistical support, including “hundreds of people in Montgomery County,” McCann-Yeh said.
McCann-Yeh said that demand for the organization’s services have increased by 60% since Roe v. Wade was overturned. While the organization primarily serves Maryland residents, it also supports people who come from states that ban or restrict access to abortion.
In addition to its local client base, Shenoy said the Gaithersburg Planned Parenthood clinic serves a large number of patients from other states. Shenoy said the expansion of telehealth has helped the clinic serve more local clients – many may qualify to see a licensed Planned Parenthood physician through telehealth for certain types of appointments and care.
“That has really helped us address the demand,” Shenoy said.
On Nov. 6, Maryland voters overwhelmingly supported a constitutional amendment that enshrined the right to an abortion in the state constitution. And in 2023, Gov. Wes Moore (D) signed “shield act” legislation into law that protects Marylanders seeking reproductive health care, as well as people from other states who come to Maryland to receive this care.
But reproductive health care advocates in Montgomery County and across the state say that these legal protections don’t fix the issue of accessibility.
“We know this is what the people in our state want and support, but that right only gets you so far,” Del. Lesley Lopez (D-Dist. 39) told MoCo360 in December. Lopez represents parts of Germantown and Montgomery Village and has been a leader in advancing reproductive health legislation in the Maryland General Assembly.
Upcoming state bill could help improve access
Lopez is introducing a bill in the 2025 legislative session that would create a state fund to support abortion services as well as practical support services, such as travel and child care. But the fund would not use tax dollars – rather, it would tap into unspent insurance premiums for abortion coverage.
As a result of a provision of the Affordable Care Act, insurance companies are forced to “overcharge” for abortion coverage, according to Lopez, but are not allowed to spend those funds on anything other than abortion. Because of this, insurers accrue about $3 million in unspent abortion premiums a year.
“The money is just sitting there,” Lopez said.
According to Lopez, insurers will have an accumulated surplus of about $25 million collected over the past 10 years in Maryland alone. If Lopez’s bill passes, it will require companies to transfer these funds to the Maryland Department of Health, which will in turn distribute the money to non-profit organizations that run abortion funds.
The highlight of this bill, according to Lopez, is that the money would not come from taxpayers. Lopez said that due to grim state budget projections, she and other state legislators have been working to craft bills that do not have a large financial component. According to Lopez, the legislation would be the first of its kind in the nation if it passes, and could serve as a model for other states to address the unspent abortion premium issue.
“I’m super excited and we have a lot of traction from other legislators,” Lopez said. “[The upcoming legislative session] was going to be tough, but now with the Trump administration looming over our heads, it feels even tougher … we have to look for the bright spots where we can. This bill provides a really good opportunity to provide a solid win for people when there’s not going to be very many.”
McCann-Yeh said that if the legislation passes, it could have a huge impact on her organization and others that support reproductive health care access.
“This program would be really meaningful in moving large sums of money towards addressing this really systemic and pervasive public health crisis,” she said.
The Baltimore Abortion Fund operates with a $2 million yearly budget, funded by a roughly 50/50 split between donations and grants, according to McCann-Yeh. But to support every person who is looking for help from the organization, an additional $6 million to $8 million annually in financial support would be necessary, McCann-Yeh said.
“It’s very challenging to turn people away. Our case managers every day are doing their best to prioritize who needs funding most urgently: Is the person who needs care experiencing interpersonal violence or homelessness? Are they a minor?” McCann-Yeh said. “We just do not have enough resources to be able to fully meet the needs of everyone. We wish we could.”
In 2023, the Baltimore Abortion Fund received a grant from the Montgomery County government to support abortion and reproductive health care access for county residents. The funding came from a program started by County Executive Marc Elrich (D) in fiscal year 2023, but it was not renewed in the following budget cycles.
“Through that program, we were able to support just over 400 Montgomery County residents and patients who needed and wanted abortion care,” McCann-Yeh said. “That was hugely transformational in the ways in which we were able to support our Montgomery County clients.”
Can the county help more with access?
During a Dec. 18 media briefing, Elrich said he “hopes nothing comes up” regarding abortion access under the Trump administration.
“Trump early on stated he thinks this matter ought to be left to the states, assuming he believes that or believes anything he says,” Elrich said. “The Maryland voters just passed the right to choose in the state constitution, so nothing we’re doing violates the laws of the state … . The president [-elect] says he believes in local legislation, so he should just ignore us and go on his merry way.”
When asked about whether he would renew the abortion access grant program, Elrich said it depends on the need.
“That’s where the providers are going to have to come to us, because the county doesn’t provide [abortion services] directly, so private, usually nonprofit providers are doing this,” Elrich said. “Nobody has come to us and set up a meeting with me and said, ‘in the coming budget, we’re going to need X.’ ”
County Council President Kate Stewart (D-Dist. 4) told MoCo360 on Dec. 19 that it is important to be proactive.
“Even if the Trump administration doesn’t go through with their threats, the fact that they’re making these threats and targeting members of our community – we need to address that,” Stewart said. “Our work needs to be proactive, reaching out to our community members, reaching out to our nonprofits, reaching out to our clinics who do this work, to say to them, ‘we’ve got your back.’ ”
Stewart said she plans to work with clinics and health centers in the county that provide reproductive health care, as well as gender-affirming care and LGBTQ+ specific health care, to determine what resources are currently available to residents, what support is still needed, and whether providers could qualify and benefit from the county’s nonprofit security grant program to prevent hate incidents.
McCann-Yeh said she hopes there will be a renewed interest from county and state legislators to invest in reproductive health care access, given potential changes at the federal level.
“Access to abortion care has been an ongoing challenge for years, even before Roe v. Wade was overturned, and these types of persistent and systemic challenges require persistent and dedicated solutions, including resources and funding to be able to really make a real change,” McCann-Yeh said. “I do sincerely hope that Montgomery County and other counties out there look at place-based grant programs, because they do really have the ability to be impactful and make real differences in the lives of county residents and people who are coming here for care.”
Maryland Commission for Women taking action
Ariana Kelly, executive director of the Rockville-based Maryland Commission for Women and a former state senator representing the Bethesda area, told MoCo360 in a statement that the commission has named reproductive health care access as a top priority for 2025. The commission is a governor-appointed, 25-member board that evaluates potential disparities for women and girls in state laws and comes up with strategies to address inequities.
“We will consider legislative proposals, inform policymakers, and work with advocates and community groups from across the state as they navigate the legislative process to help amplify women’s voices,” Kelly said. “We cannot rest. Maryland’s family planning and abortion care providers face growing demand from both in-state and out-of-state patients.”
Kelly noted the state has taken many steps to protect reproductive rights, but that there are still challenges when it comes to access. She said one of the commission’s key priorities for 2025 is addressing how to help patients afford care, particularly given the limited resources for nonprofits such as the Baltimore Abortion Fund.
“We need to determine what role the state can play in supporting community groups that help people access care. Collaboration and innovation will be essential in navigating the budget climate,” Kelly said. “Beyond abortion care, legislative priorities will likely include pregnancy and newborn care, childcare, and contraception access, making 2025 a pivotal year for women’s health.”
Shenoy, the local primary care director for Planned Parenthood, said that while she understands why local patients may feel anxious about potential federal decisions, nothing has changed yet and local clinics are still offering the same services.
“We can meet patients where they’re at and help provide whatever long-acting methods we can, and in the meantime, our doors remain open, and we’ll provide the care that we can,” she said.
