Abortion, Every Day (5.2.23)

Doctors: Abortion bans will put overwhelming strain on NICUs

In the States

Ohio Republicans are still pushing their $20 million dollar special election in August—an attempt to stop a pro-choice ballot measure from undoing the state’s (currently blocked) abortion ban. Collin Marozzi, deputy policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio, says, “We know that the whole August special election move, that’s about abortion. That’s about kneecapping the reproductive rights amendment for November.” As a reminder: Republicans in the state are trying to raise the ballot measure standard to require 60% of the vote as opposed to a simple majority, a move that is explicitly about stopping citizens from making their voices heard on abortion.

The good news is that despite conservative lawmakers’ efforts, they are hitting some speed bumps: Today, two House committees failed to act on the legislation that would allow for the special election to take place. Their final deadline to make it happen is May 10. Fingers and toes crossed.

Also in Ohio, three physicians write in the The Columbus Dispatch about what an abortion ban means not just for women in the state—but for medically fragile infants and hospitals’ ability to care for them: They estimate that if the state’s ban goes into effect, NICU admissions in the state would increase by 2,000 infants per year. The doctors write that the increase would overwhelm an already-overtaxed system, and lead to supply and staff shortages that will reduce the level of care for all infants in the state. Most horrible of all, “if the ban is reinstated, the state government will take control and force families to bring children into the world, only to watch them suffer and die.”

In Texas, where a man has sued three of his ex-wife’s friends for allegedly helping her to obtain an abortion, two of those women are counter-suing. (Good for them.) Their lawsuit argues that Marcus Silva knew that his then-wife was getting abortion medication after looking through her text messages. From the lawsuit:

“Rather than talking with [his ex-wife] about what he found or disposing of the pill, Silva took photos of the texts and surreptitiously put the pill back…He wasn’t interested in stopping her from terminating a possible pregnancy. Instead, he wanted to obtain evidence he could use against her if she refused to stay under his control, which is precisely what he tried to do.”

And, of course, that was always the point—power and control. Which is what makes Texas’s abortion law so incredibly fucked up: It’s not enough that the state has banned abortion and put people’s lives at risk, they’re also enabling abusers in the state to use the law as a way to punish the women in their lives.

You may remember that Montana recently passed legislation to make it harder for abortion patients to get Medicaid reimbursements; the law requires doctors to provide documentation beforehand ‘proving’ that the abortion is medically-necessary. I’m glad to say that after the law was challenged by abortion providers in the state, along with the ACLU of Montana and the Center for Reproductive Rights, a judge has issued a temporary block on the law. The organizations that brought the suit released a joint statement expressing their relief and noting, “it shouldn’t matter what zip code you live in, how much money you make, or what insurance you use—everyone deserves access to the full range of reproductive health care services.”

PBS NewsHour did a segment on the crisis in Idaho, where OBGYNs are leaving en masse and hospitals are closing their maternity wards because of the state’s abortion ban. It’s heart-breaking to listen to doctors talk about having to leave their homes, and what it was like to give care to patients knowing that they were risking prison-time. Dr. Amelia Huntsberger, one of the physicians who left Idaho, said “Do I wait until she bleeds out? Do I wait until we do CPR? When is it that I can intervene?”

The part that really made me me want to throw something, though, was listening to Republican Rep. Mark Sauter. When asked if he thought about abortion as it related to women’s health, he just shook his head ‘no’. “It’s like anything, you get exposed to something all of a sudden and you go, ‘wow, there’s a different way to look at this.’” (Sauter now supports legislation that allows doctors to provide health-saving abortions, but other Republicans shut that bill down. Too little, too late.) Watch the segment, which is excellent, below:

I think we have a new entry for the ‘stupid shit Republicans say’ files: In Colorado, state Rep. Richard Holtorf gave a radio interview where he accused Democrats of trying to make the state into an “abortion tourism” destination:

“So now people are going to be able to drive to Colorado and get an abortion. In fact, they can drive up to the ski resort, go skiing for a week, and then on the way home they can get their abortion.”

If you need a palate-cleanser after that bullshit, take the time to read this op-ed from Michelle Colon, founder of SHERo (Sisters Helping Every Woman Rise and Organize) Mississippi. Colon lays out how the attacks on abortion rights are part of a broader, interconnected effort to maintain power and control over marginalized communities:

“So-called ‘pro-lif'e’ and ‘pro-family’ elected leaders in Mississippi have done almost nothing to protect Mississippians’ lives or their families. They have refused to or shown little interest in supporting policies that can really help people take care of their families, like making childcare more affordable, ensuring women receive equal pay for equal work, protecting access to safe drinking water for families in Jackson or supporting rural hospitals and healthcare clinics.”

Whew.

Quick hits:

• The Oregon House advanced an abortion protections bill;

• Governors in Indiana and New York both signed laws increasing access to birth control by allowing pharmacists to prescribe hormonal contraception;

• Pro-choice groups filed a brief urging New Mexico’s Supreme Court to strike down the local ordinances banning abortion in spite of state law;

• Salon on the horrors of North Dakota’s recently-signed abortion ban;

• And some more information on the way Washington’s new abortion rights law protects patients’ privacy.

In the Nation

Can someone please explain to me why the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ (ACOG)—an organization that as staunchly support abortion rights for years—has given over a million dollars to anti-choice politicians over the last ten years? Because I am really struggling here.

A new study shows that out of the nearly 300 federal legislations that the group’s political action committee donated to, 39.5% worked to end abortion access in the country. Researchers say, “ACOG may be undermining its stated commitment to abortion access and patient autonomy by supporting legislators whose agendas run contrary to the priorities of [the organization].” I’d say so! When questioned about the donations by TIME, ACOG responded with pretty mealy-mouthed statement about considering “many factors when evaluating candidates.” Disappointing.

In the wake of a federal investigation into two hospitals who denied a Missouri woman abortion care, doctors in anti-abortion states are struggling with how to proceed. Lawrence Gostin, a law professor at Georgetown University, told Axios, “You could lose your hospital privileges if you fail to follow federal law and you could lose your license if you fail to follow state law,” said Lawrence Gostin, a law professor at Georgetown University. Dahlia Lithwick was on MSNBC talking about the investigation, as well, and (as always) is definitely worth listening to.

OBGYN and director of Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health, Dr. Daniel Grossman, writes in the Los Angeles Times that we need to “free the pill”:

“From a medical perspective, this is a ‘no-brainer.’ Birth control pills should be available without a prescription for people of all ages. It makes no sense for healthcare providers to hold people’s birth control hostage in the clinic, forcing patients to be seen in person before giving them a prescription for the contraceptive they need.”

Obviously, increased access to contraception is more important ever in a post-Roe world. And while we’re seeing some Republicans support legislation to allow for over-the-counter birth control, we know that their long-term goal is to restrict (and perhaps eradicate) access.

I also really liked this piece from Kelcie Moseley-Morris about how difficult it is for women to find mental health support after an abortion that isn’t anti-choice bullshit. Because while we know that the vast majority of women don’t regret having an abortion (and that the overwhelming feeling the report is relief), there are negative impacts associated with the stigma around abortion:

“[A] national study of more than 4,000 abortion patients in the U.S. published in 2020 showed nearly two-thirds thought people would look down on them if they knew they had an abortion, and that perceived stigma was associated with higher odds of experiencing psychological distress years later.

That stigma may be increasingly heightened in today’s environment and affect someone’s mental health, [Texas Woman’s University researcher Debra] Mollen said.”

I was also glad to see Exhale Pro-Voice get a shout-out in the article, a group that’s been doing great nonjudgmental work around abortion and mental health for a long time. One of the (many) awful things that have come out of this post-Roe moment is the feeling that we can’t have nuanced, complicated conversations about abortion. This is a good reminder that we can.

Quick hits:

• MSNBC on the new Gallup poll reporting that nearly three-quarters of college students say their state’s abortion laws will impact their decision to stay enrolled or attend school elsewhere;

• Tessa Stuart at Rolling Stone looks at how the next battle in the war on women: ending no-fault divorce;

• Rewire interviewed abortion doula Hannah Matthews about her new book You or Someone You Love;

• And Hey Jane just became the first telemedicine company providing abortion medication to accept insurance.

Care Denied

An Alabama woman was denied an abortion despite her fetus having little chance of survival. Kelly Shannon told ABC News that her doctor called her with the news that while one committee approved the abortion, a second higher-level committee denied the procedure.

“I was sitting in my car talking to her and I couldn't form words. I just sat there and sobbed,” she said. Shannon believes that part of the reason that her abortion was denied was that the state district attorney was doing television rounds at the time, “actively talking about pursuing convictions for anybody in performing abortions.” Shannon ended up going to Virginia for the abortion, where she was given a bill for over $2,000.

When ABC News asked the University of Alabama hospital about why they refused to perform an abortion despite the fetus’ fatal conditions, they replied with a statement reading, “UAB does not perform elective abortions. We provide care to women who present to us in need of pregnancy-related care within the law.” Honestly, the fucking nerve.

You Love to See It

If you’re looking for a gift for a Mother’s Day gift, check out the new merch at Pregnancy Justice (which does incredible work)—just love it. You can support the organization and get your gift-shopping done here. I mean, who wouldn’t want this mug??