Abortion-rights advocacy organizations said the move sends a clear message that the administration is siding with anti-abortion foes.

“Stripping away federal guidance affirming what the law requires will put lives at risk,” said Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Women’s Law Center, in a statement. “To be clear: this action doesn’t change hospitals’ legal obligations, but it does add to the fear, confusion, and dangerous delays patients and providers have faced since the fall of Roe v. Wade.”