Abortion in Canada—Legal for Decades But Hindered by Stigma

By Juliet Morrison

Ottawa, Jul 19 2022 (IPS) - Toronto resident Miranda Knight describes her abortion experience as relatively simple. After finding out she was pregnant on a Wednesday in 2017, she booked an appointment at an available clinic and got one for the following Monday. She had the procedure that day and left the clinic by noon.

But Knight’s experience is not the reality for all. As Canada’s most populous city, Toronto has several access points to abortion. Despite abortion being legal nationwide since 1988 and officially treated like any other medical procedure, many other parts of the country do not have access points.

Continued: https://www.ipsnews.net/2022/07/abortion-in-canada-legal-for-decades-but-hindered-by-stigma/

19.07.2022

Commentary

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abortion doulas

Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada

Abortion Support Services Atlantic

Alberta Abortion Access Network

Autumn Reinhardt-Simpson

Canada – Improving Indigenous communities’ access to reproductive health services

May 30, 2022
Richard Dal Monte, University of Victoria News

Many Canadians take contraception and reproductive rights for granted. Contraceptives are widely available at drug stores and supermarkets, and abortion has been legal since 1988.

But are reproductive services and medical procedures equally accessible to all residents of Canada?

A team of University of Victoria researchers reports that while the issue is complicated, Indigenous Peoples are disproportionately subject to inequitable access.

Continued: https://www.uvic.ca/news/topics/2022+knowledge-equal-access+news

30.05.2022

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Astrid Pérez Piñán

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Renée Monchalin

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Canada – A choice of options

It's time to talk about self-managed abortion care as a safe alternative in Canada — and the legal risks involved.

BY JULIANNE STEVENSON & JENNIFER TAYLOR
16 SEP 2021

The new Texas law that bans abortion after six weeks of pregnancy is obviously horrific. It also proves that legal protection for abortion — which we think of as relatively robust in Canada — is more fragile than it seems. But this tragic moment presents an opportunity to reframe our thinking around abortion. That is, we should think of abortion not just in relation to the law, but as something that can happen safely at home in appropriate circumstances, without direct medical supervision or state involvement.

Inspired by the work of scholars like Prof. Joanna Erdman, we believe self-managed abortion (SMA) needs to become a more mainstream part of the abortion conversation in Canada. As part of that conversation, it’s important to evaluate some of the legal risks involved — because, while the law shouldn’t always dictate how we think about abortion, we can’t ignore it either.

Continued: https://www.nationalmagazine.ca/en-ca/articles/law/opinion/2021/a-choice-of-options

How COVID-19 has hindered — and helped — abortion access in Nova Scotia

By Alex Cooke, Global News
Posted May 5, 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on almost all facets of health care, and abortion access isn’t an exception.

For Shannon Hardy, founder of Abortion Support Services Atlantic, COVID-19 hasn’t necessarily created new problems, but it’s highlighted issues that were there long before the pandemic.

“Geography, always,” she said of the biggest challenges facing someone seeking abortion.

Continued: https://globalnews.ca/news/7833844/abortion-access-covid-19-nova-scotia/

05.05.2021

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An Abortion Doula On Canada’s Problematic Lack Of Access

Sarah Ratchford
Last Updated July 28, 2020

As an abortion doula, Shannon Hardy spends her days driving people to appointments or taking care of them afterwards. That all changed when the pandemic started. Sharing a car with a stranger, not to mention helping them convalesce, has been out of the question since COVID-19, leaving many without access to this crucial healthcare service.

Getting an abortion in Atlantic Canada, where Hardy lives, was a challenge even before coronavirus. Though abortions have been decriminalized in Canada since 1988, provinces have jurisdiction over access. As a result, where and at what point in a pregnancy you can get an abortion is influenced by the local political climate, and varies widely. Mifegymiso, the pill that induces what's called a medical abortion, is available and covered by provincial healthcare, but not every doctor will prescribe it. In some places, there's access to surgical abortions, but parts or all of it are not covered or you have to pay up front and seek reimbursement afterward.

Continued: https://www.refinery29.com/en-ca/abortion-doula-canada-access

28.07.2020

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barriers to abortion access

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Cape Breton women still face barriers and stigma when seeking an abortion

Cape Breton women still face barriers and stigma when seeking an abortion
Many family doctors still don't prescribe so-called abortion pill

Brittany Wentzell - CBC
Aug 8, 2019

There may be less red tape surrounding the so-called abortion pill, but many women in Cape Breton will still make the lengthy drive to Halifax if they want to terminate a pregnancy.

The issue, according to advocates, is the reluctance of many family doctors on the island to prescribe Mifegymiso — the brand name for the combination of two pills used to end a pregnancy of up to nine weeks.

Continued: https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.5234425

Canada – Abortion doula training offered to help fill gap in health care

Abortion doula training offered to help fill gap in health care
'It's a medical procedure and we wouldn't send somebody to get a heart operation without any support'

Aya Al-Hakim · CBC News
Posted: Oct 28, 2018

A group of women were trained Saturday on how to best support a woman going through a medical or surgical abortion.

The training was offered at Mount Saint Vincent University. It was organized by the university's feminist collective.

Continued: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/abortion-doula-training-healthcare-mount-saint-vincent-university-1.4881366

28.10.2018