Biden lifts abortion referral ban on family planning clinics

(Mary Altaffer/AP)

The Biden administration has reversed a ban on abortion referrals by family planning clinics, lifting a Trump-era restriction as battles over abortion grow sharper from Texas to the US Supreme Court.

The Department of Health and Human Services said its new regulation will restore the federal family planning programme to the way it ran under the Obama administration, when clinics were able to refer women seeking abortions to a provider.