New York v. Kennedy

For nearly sixty years, the Division of Reproductive Health (DRH) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has led federal efforts to improve women’s health, support pregnancy care, and address the nation’s maternal mortality crisis. On March 27, 2025, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy issued a sweeping “Communiqué” that, if it takes effect, would dramatically restructure the agency, eliminating DRH.  The Communiqué would defund and dismantle core public-health programs that states and communities rely on to study, prevent, and respond to maternal mortality and morbidity.  

On May 5, 2025, a coalition of states filed suit to stop the dismantling of HHS. The court has since granted the states’ request for preliminary relief, preventing HHS from implementing the Communiqué while litigation proceeds. 

The Lawyering Project and Lynette Labinger, Cooperating Counsel for the ACLU of Rhode Island, filed an amicus brief on behalf of: 

• Family members: Clayton Anderson, Wanda Irving, and Charles Johnson, who each lost a loved one to preventable childbirth complications. 

• Community-based organizations: Indigenous Women Rising; National Birth Equity Coalition; Birthmark Doula Collective; 4Kira4Moms, who work every day to prevent maternal deaths in their communities. 

The brief shares the devastating experiences of families harmed by maternal mortality and explains why dismantling of HHS’s reproductive-health infrastructure would profoundly undermine the public interest. The amicus highlights that the federal systems threatened by the Communiqué are essential to monitoring maternal deaths, supporting Maternal Mortality Review Committees, and guiding Perinatal Quality Collaboratives. Eliminating DRH would jeopardize the data, technical assistance, and coordination these entities rely on to save lives.  The families in this case reflect thousands across the nation who live with the consequences of our country’s maternal mortality crisis. Their stories underscore why the country cannot afford to abandon the federal programs designed to prevent these tragedies.  

Some of the family members and organizations in the brief are available for media interviews.  Contact media@lawyeringproject.org for more information. 

Amicus Brief on Behalf of Families Who Have Lost Loved Ones to Maternal Mortality and Organizations That Address Maternal Mortality 

Plaintiffs File Opposition to Motion to Dismiss 

Defendants File Motion to Dismiss 

Plaintiffs File Complaint