New Mexico starts building an abortion clinic to serve neighboring states, train medical students

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Construction is getting underway on a state-funded reproductive health and abortion clinic in southern New Mexico that will cater to local residents and people who travel from neighboring states such as Texas and Oklahoma with major restrictions on abortion, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Thursday.

Construction of the clinic will draw upon $10 million in state funding that was set aside by the governor under a 2022 executive order. New Mexico has one of the country’s most liberal abortion-access laws.

Lujan Grisham, a second-term Democrat who can't run again in 2026, reiterated her commitment to shoring up abortion access in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade and revoked universal access to abortion.

“Access to reproductive healthcare should be a fundamental human right,” Lujan Grisham said in a statement. “Once completed, this clinic will stand as a testament to our state’s commitment to reproductive freedom for residents of New Mexico, and also those who travel here from out-of-state in need of this care.”

New Mexico accompanies Democratic-led states from California to New Jersey that are underwriting efforts to bolster abortion services and protections.

New Jersey last year awarded $15 million in zero-interest loans and grants to health care facilities that provide abortion services for facility improvements and increased security. In 2022, California legislators approved $200 million in new spending to bolster the state’s already robust abortion protections.

The governor's announcement in New Mexico thrusts public policy on abortion back in the spotlight in the runup to the November general election, with the entire state Legislature up for reelection as Democrats defend their state House and Senate majorities.

Republican contenders for a U.S. Senate seat and a congressional swing district in southern New Mexico have said they won’t support a federal abortion ban, amid Democratic-backed political ads that highlight the potential for further federal restrictions.

The Republican Party of New Mexico on Thursday condemned public spending on an abortion clinic that caters to out-of-state visitors as an example of misplaced priorities among Democrats.

In 2021, New Mexico state lawmakers repealed a dormant 1969 statute that outlawed most abortion procedures as felonies, ensuring access. But opposition to abortion runs deep in New Mexico communities along the border with Texas, which has one of the most restrictive bans in the U.S.

Several New Mexico cities and counties have approved abortion-ban ordinances that are on hold while the state Supreme Court weighs whether local governments have the right to back federal abortion restrictions under a 19th century U.S. law that prohibits the shipping of abortion medication and supplies.

The new clinic is scheduled for completion within 18 months to provide services ranging from medical and procedural abortions to contraception, cervical cancer screenings and education about adoptions.

The health branch of the University of New Mexico says it broke ground on the clinic in a partnership with groups including Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains.

The project was designed to improve health care access and create new training and residency opportunities beyond Albuquerque for University of New Mexico School of Medicine students, the University of New Mexico said in a statement.

The public university's board of regents approved the acquisition of land for the project in May.