Pasted below is a message from UCSF Ob/Gyn faculty member Jody Steinauer about UC affiliations with healthcare entities that use religious directives to prohibit the use of contraception, gender-affirming care for transgender people, abortion, and assisted reproductive technology (e.g. sperm/egg donors, IVF).

We feel this issue is an important concern to UCSF faculty, and ask you to consider signing the letter linked below.

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Dear UC Colleagues and Allies,

I am reaching out as a UCSF Ob/Gyn faculty member who cares deeply about reproductive rights and the care of LGBTQ+ people. Please sign our letter to UC President Michael Drake that expresses opposition to UC affiliations with healthcare entities that use religious directives to prohibit the use of contraception, gender-affirming care for transgender people, abortion, and assisted reproductive technology (e.g. sperm/egg donors, IVF). 

I believe religious directives that prohibit essential care for women and LGBTQ+ people are antithetical to our UC values, our public, secular mission, and our commitment to equity, nondiscrimination, and care of the underserved. These restrictive systems of care harm vulnerable populations; UC affiliations with these entities elevate the needs of some patients at the expense of discriminating against others. 

In its first eight days, the Biden-Harris administration has issued important executive orders to protect LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights. With this momentum, it is certainly not the time for our California public universities to expand discriminatory care. With a solid conservative majority on the Supreme Court, states will continue to enact policies that restrict access to care, as we have seen with abortion. Therefore, California needs to expand, not restrict, access to the full range of sexual and reproductive healthcare and set an example for high quality care that is consistent with our values.

Please sign the Letter to UC President Drake and forward to other UC faculty, staff, trainees, or alumni. Also, we are not alone in our opposition to these affiliations. Fifty one major advocacy groups for LGBTQ+ people, reproductive health, and health equity/care of the underserved, as well as the majority of California’s federal and state members of Congress have written letters of opposition. Scroll down on the linked page to see their letters.

Thank you for your support,

Jody Steinauer, MD, PhD (she/her/hers)
Philip D. Darney Distinguished Professor of Family Planning & Reproductive Health
Director, Bixby Center for Global Reproductive Health
Dept. of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences
Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital
University of California, San Francisco