US tech companies including Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, Apple and Google will cover or reimburse employees for travel expenses related to medical procedures, including abortions. Tech companies travel expenses

Amazon announced in May it would cover up to $4,000 in travel expenses related to medical procedures including abortion services. That policy is retroactive to Jan. 1 for employees and their dependents covered by two company-offered health plans. The funds could go toward services rendered if care is not available virtually or within 100 miles of an employee’s home.

Microsoft said it would “continue to do everything we can under the law to support our employees and their enrolled dependents in accessing critical health care.”

It did not say whether it will change its data practices to improve privacy for people seeking abortions, a concern experts expressed when the U.S. Supreme Court draft opinion on Roe v. Wade was leaked.

This is a sad day. Reversing Roe v. Wade is an unjust and unacceptable setback. And it puts women’s lives at risk, especially the most disadvantaged.

— Bill Gates (@BillGates) June 24, 2022

“That availability, that data, could put people at risk,” U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene, D.-Wash., said previously.

Meta, Facebook’s parent company, said Friday it intends to reimburse employees’ travel expenses “to the extent permitted by law.” Some lawmakers have started considering legislation to stop people from traveling to other states to end their pregnancies.

“We are in the process of assessing how best to do so given the legal complexities involved,” Meta said in a statement.

Google wrote in a letter to employees Friday its benefits plan and health insurance would cover out-of-state medical procedures that are not available where an employee lives or works. It added that employees could apply for relocation without justification.

The company said it would “continue our work to protect user privacy.”

“Abortion access is a labor issue,” the union wrote on Twitter. “This decision is a direct attack against millions of working people—particularly workers of color as those with resources will continue to access safe abortions. Today’s decision will not stop abortions—it will only criminalize working people.”

The leaders of Amazon Labor Union, the first union at an Amazon warehouse in the U.S., echoed the sentiment. President Christian Smalls tweeted on Friday “Women rights are Labor rights.” Chairman Derrick Palmer added that the ruling was confirmation that “the people is all we have left to make positive change in this country.” 

Disney reached out to employees to stress that it recognizes the “impact” of the Supreme Court’s decision and “remains committed to providing comprehensive access to quality and affordable care” for all employees and their families, which includes family planning and reproductive care, “no matter where they live”, an internal source told Variety.

For Disney employees unable to access a medical service, including abortions, in one location, they have a travel benefit that allows for “affordable coverage for receiving similar levels of care in another location.

A Netflix spokesperson said that the streaming service does offer travel reimbursement coverage for full-time US employees and their dependents who need to travel for cancer treatment, transplants, gender-affirming care, or abortion — through our US health plans. This is a $ 10,000-lifetime allowance per employee and/or their dependents per service.

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