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Anti-abortion activists gather this week in Washington for their annual March for Life, eager to cheer on a continuing wave of federal and state abortion restrictions. However, many activists on both sides of the debate already are looking ahead to March 4, when the U.S. Supreme Court hears its first major abortion case since the addition of two justices appointed by President Donald Trump. (Crary, 1/21)

Groups pushing for the advancement of abortion rights and those looking to limit the procedure have an ambitious agenda starting this week, foreshadowing a year that could be critical for advocates on both sides of the debate. In two months, the Supreme Court will hear its first major abortion case since 2016, and both sides are revving up for a major presidential election. States are also eyeing a number of new reproductive health bills as their legislatures come back into session. (Raman, 1/22)

But as another case about abortion heads to a significantly more conservative Supreme Court this year, reproductive rights advocates and health care providers say they are preparing for a world in which the landmark 1973 decision is either significantly weakened or overturned. “We’re at a moment where the threat is imminent for the country,” Alexis McGill Johnson, acting director and CEO of Planned Parenthood, tells TIME. “It’s already real for many women who don’t have access” to safe abortions. In March, the Supreme Court will hear June Medical Services v. Gee, which challenges a Louisiana law requiring doctors who provide abortions to have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of where they perform the procedure. (Abrams, 1/22)

Kaiser Health News: With Fate Of Roe V. Wade Unsure, Abortion Fight Shifts To New Territory | 

Jan. 22 marks the 47th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark case that legalized abortion nationwide. Those on both sides of the furious debate say this could be the year when everything changes. In March, the Supreme Court will hear its first abortion case since Justice Brett Kavanaugh replaced Anthony Kennedy, who had been the swing vote on abortion cases. A decision is expected by summer. (Rovner, 1/17)

President Trump wants Roe v. Wade overturned, while many of the candidates vying for the Democratic nomination would seek to codify abortion rights into law. “I believe that abortion rights are human rights,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), one such candidate. Unlike the candidates, however, the American public is not absolutist — and is even somewhat confused — on aspects of the issue, according to a poll released Wednesday. (Cha and Cuskin, 1/22)

Planned Parenthood on Tuesday endorsed a Democratic challenger to Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, saying Collins “turned her back” on women and citing her vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court as well as other judicial nominees who oppose abortion. Sara Gideon, speaker of the Maine House of Representatives, welcomed the endorsement from the Planned Parenthood Action Fund. “There’s never been a more important time to stand up for reproductive rights,” she said, in the face of "systematic attacks on reproductive rights across the country. (Sharp, 1/21)

Planned Parenthood Action Fund has endorsed the Democrat challenging Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) in her closely watched reelection race. Planned Parenthood’s endorsement of Sara Gideon, Speaker of Maine’s House of Representatives, could be a setback for Collins, who is one of the few Republicans in Congress who supports abortion rights. Collins had been supported by Planned Parenthood in the past. But the organization said Collins has “abandoned” women with her vote last year to confirm Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was accused of sexual misconduct. (Hellmann, 1/21)

The Ohio Department of Health doesn’t track whether abortions are performed using telemedicine, which would involve a doctor prescribing medicine to induce an abortion, and assisting the patient through telecommunications technology. But people on both sides of the abortion debate don’t think many – if any – Ohio abortions are performed by telemedicine. The process allows patients to see their doctor through a secure computer connection. (Hancock, 1/21)

The number of abortions performed in Illinois has increased about 7%, with about 3,000 more terminated pregnancies reported in 2018 compared with the previous year, according to the latest data from the Illinois Department of Public Health. The annual Illinois abortion report released last week shows 42,441 pregnancies were terminated statewide in 2018, up from 39,329 in 2017. The increase mostly came from Illinois residents, with approximately 4,000 more in-state women having abortions in 2018 than in 2017. Data for 2019 is not expected to be released for about a year. (Lourgos, 1/22)