Bill that requires colleges to offer abortion pills passes Colorado Legislature

Student health centers at colleges and universities in Colorado will need to keep abortion medication in stock if Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signs a bill passed by the Colorado Legislature into law. 

House Bill 26-1335 passed both the House and the Senate on party-line votes, with Republicans against it. It would require higher education institutions that have student health centers to provide medication abortion services on-site.

Any institution that has a pharmacy on-site would need to maintain a stock of abortion medication for students enrolled at the school. If an institution does not have a pharmacy, it would be required to send a prescription to a pharmacy off campus or dispense the medication through the health center if it has proper licensure to do so.

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Schools with “sincerely held” religious beliefs against abortion would be exempt from the requirements of the bill.

California, Massachusetts, New York, Illinois and Delaware have similar policies that require student health centers to provide abortion medication or referrals to clinics that can offer it.

“Young people believe that no matter the reason, a person who has decided to have an abortion should be able to do so — affordably, in a timely manner, and with support and dignity from their chosen healthcare provider,” Kiyana Newell, policy and research director at New Era Colorado, said in a statement.

The right to access abortion care is enshrined in the Colorado Constitution after voters approved Amendment 79 in 2024. Public workers and Medicaid recipients can have abortion care covered as of 2026 because of the amendment. Bill sponsors said HB-1335 will realize access to abortion care for college students in Colorado. 

“College students are navigating a nation that continues to undermine their right to abortion care, but Colorado is and will remain a safe haven for reproductive rights,” bill sponsor Sen. Katie Wallace, a Longmont Democrat, said in a statement. 

Other bill sponsors include Sen. Jeff Bridges, a Greenwood Village Democrat, Rep. Lorena García, an Adams County Democrat, and Rep. Kenny Nguyen, a Broomfield Democrat.

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