Soon after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Mississippi’s challenge to the constitutionality of federal protections for abortion rights in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the ABFM Board of Directors asked us to release the following statement:

In light of this decision, the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) Board of Directors strongly endorses the American Board of Medical Specialties statement on Legislative Interference in Medical Education, Training, and Practice., as well as the statement issued by The American Academy of Family Physicians regarding this ruling.  As a certifying board that serves over 100,000 family physicians in the U.S., we recognize the commitment they make each day to provide optimal health care for all patients they serve. We stand by the need for these physicians to be able to deliver safe and accessible reproductive health services to women, retain the ability to receive adequate training to provide this care, and to support the need to preserve the sanctity of the doctor-patient relationship in addressing personal medical issues.  Read Full Statement.

As the authors of Dobbs intended, the country is now engaged in a passionate, national debate about the whether, when, and how of abortion. The ABFM does not advocate in legislatures but in this case, we are bound to weigh in on the public dialogue about issues that are critical from the perspective of Board Certification: safety, training opportunities, and against criminalization of doctors’ private conversations with their patients. We stand by your efforts to meet the Institute of Medicine aims of providing care that is safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable.