Founder and CEO Kate Ryder's message to Maven employees on Roe v. Wade

By Kate Ryder, Founder and CEO, Maven

I founded Maven in 2014 on a fundamental belief that people—and particularly women and families—deserve more access to better healthcare. Everything we’ve built at Maven has centered on that principle. To deny access to basic healthcare is to deny a fundamental human right.

Like many of you, it was with some shock and much disappointment that I read the leaked Dobbs v. Jackson draft opinion from the Supreme Court. While not a final decision, if published it would overturn constitutionally protected abortion rights. The most vulnerable and marginalized women will bear the heaviest burden.

It is core to Maven’s mission as a company that we believe that all people have the fundamental right to make private decisions about their bodies and their wellbeing, and to decide when, if, and how to have a child. Access to safe abortion is a standard component of women’s health and pregnancy care, and Maven offers a safe, affirming place for people to get guidance on their care needs, free of judgment, negativity, or bias of any kind.

Since last September, when the Texas legislature passed SB-8, which banned abortion after 6 weeks, Maven teams have been planning and working on how to continue to support access to care if Roe v. Wade gets overturned. That means leveraging Maven Wallet to help American companies cover expenses for women seeking out-of-state care, and it means supporting members with options counseling and providing a safe forum for people to learn about their choices regarding pregnancy. We’ll share more information in the All-Maven meeting.

In the meantime, I want to be clear that we continue to stand with our providers and the broader medical community in condemning regulations that roll back access to safe and affordable reproductive care, including safe abortions. For reference, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists official position is:

"ACOG supports access to care for all individuals, irrespective of financial status, and supports the availability of all reproductive options. ACOG opposes unnecessary regulations that limit or delay access to care. The intervention of legislative bodies into medical decision making is inappropriate, ill advised, and dangerous."

A challenging period likely lies ahead for women’s and family health. But as with many other challenging times that we’ve lived through, we are not helpless. Particularly here, we have an opportunity to stand up for what’s right and continue expanding access to care through the exceptional product we’ve built and the exceptional team we’ve assembled.