A protestor attends a Girls’s March rally in Phoenix, Arizona in 2022.
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A protestor attends a Girls’s March rally in Phoenix, Arizona in 2022.
Mario Tama/Getty Photos
A lot has occurred with abortion entry within the almost two years because the Supreme Courtroom overturned Roe v. Wade.
State legal guidelines have been altering continually, new bans have taken impact, and there have been a slew of lawsuits and poll measures.
All Issues Thought of host Mary Louise Kelly sat down with NPR’s reproductive rights correspondent Elissa Nadworny, and Selena Simmons-Duffin, who covers well being coverage at NPR, to look at the state of abortion.
There are whole bans on abortion with very restricted exceptions in 14 states. Just a few extra states have six-week bans.
“Florida was the most up-to-date place for this [six-week ban] to take impact. There are states like Nebraska that ban abortion after 12 weeks. In Arizona, it is 15 weeks. Greater than half of the states have restrictions. And in these states, the variety of abortions has dropped drastically,” Nadworny mentioned.
However regardless of that development, the general variety of abortions within the U.S. has really gone up — due partially to the rising accessibility of telehealth appointments that may present treatment abortions.
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What voters need
With regards to the poll, Nadworny says abortion rights has been a successful challenge.
“Nationally, polling reveals 6 in 10 Individuals say abortion ought to be authorized in all or most circumstances, however that may fluctuate by state,” she mentioned. “However since Dobbs, voters in six states have weighed in on constitutional amendments on abortion. Voters selected entry to abortion every time.”
4 states — Colorado, Florida, Maryland and South Dakota — will likely be voting on the appropriate to an abortion within the upcoming elections. Six extra states, together with Arizona and Missouri, are working to get it on the poll.
Folks collect at Utah’s state capitol in 2022 after the leaked draft opinion by Supreme Courtroom Justice Samuel Alito prompt that the courtroom was poised to overturn Roe v. Wade.
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Voters this fall may be reacting to what they’ve seen when their entry to reproductive healthcare turns into restricted.
In states with extra restrictive bans, like Idaho, dozens of OB-GYNs have left the state, in response to one physician who spoke to NPR. And three maternity wards have closed because the state’s abortion ban took impact. Recruiting issues are widespread for hospitals which might be working in states with abortion bans.
What might change
Simmons-Duffin says that whereas abortion entry is getting rolled again in some states, it’s gaining extra protections and funding in others. When Roe v. Wade was in place, there have been plenty of restrictions and rules about when and the way the process could possibly be carried out.
“Some states like Michigan, Colorado, Minnesota, California and others have made strikes to undo a few of these rules,” she mentioned. “They’re eliminating issues like ready intervals and gestational limits,” Simmons-Duffin mentioned.
“They’re permitting extra sorts of suppliers like nurse practitioners to supply abortions. They’re coaching extra suppliers on abortions. Some states have stockpiled Mifepristone, one of many medicines that can be utilized for abortion, in case entry is curtailed sooner or later.”
Simmons-Duffin added that some locations, like New York Metropolis, have made abortion hubs a part of the well being division. “So you may name a quantity and discover out the place to get an abortion and get funding to cowl the prices,” she mentioned.
In the meantime, there are nonetheless two main selections on abortion pending earlier than the Supreme Courtroom which might be set to be introduced subsequent month:
“Each of those selections will likely be coming down in early summer time, just some months earlier than the election. So no matter what the justices determine, it is going to catapult abortion again into the headlines at a key time for voters,” Simmons-Duffin added.
For the complete dialogue on abortion within the U.S., hearken to the episode of Think about This by tapping the play button on the prime of the web page.
