President Joe Biden signed an executive order Friday with the intent of protecting access to abortion, according to AP. 

In a speech announcing the action, Biden discussed implementing actions that will lessen the potential penalties facing women who want an abortion, and acknowledged his administration’s limitations in providing abortion access for all. He conceded that it would take an act of Congress to make abortion legal nationwide after the Supreme Court’s ruling in June that kicked the responsibility for making laws about abortion back to the states. 

“The fastest way to restore Roe is to pass a national law,” said Biden. “The challenge is go out and vote. For God’s sake there is an election in November. Vote. Vote. Vote. Vote!”

Biden instructed the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services to work against states that limit pregnant women’s ability to cross state lines to get an abortion or get abortion medications. 

In addition, the executive order directs agencies to educate medical providers and insurance companies about how they don’t have to share privileged patient information with authorities. This is an effort to protect pregnant women who want abortions, according to AP. 

Biden also asked the Federal Trade Commission to take steps to protect the identities of women who go online to get information about abortions. He wants the FTC to create an “interagency task force” to coordinate efforts at the federal level to give women access to abortion. 

Finally, Biden told his staff to gather volunteer lawyers to provide pro bono legal assistance to help them work around the new state laws prohibiting abortion following SCOTUS’s ruling.

“We need two additional pro-choice senators and a pro-choice house to codify Roe,” Biden said. “Your vote can make that a reality.”

Nancy Flory, Ph.D., is a senior editor at The Stream. You can follow her @NancyFlory3, and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.