USA – The Stigma of “Late-Term Abortions” Is the Point

“It’s just normal folks who end up getting pushed back and pushed back and pushed back.”

JUNE 3, 2021
BECCA ANDREWS

When the Supreme Court decided recently to consider Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban, Marjorie Dannenfelser from Susan B. Anthony List said: “This is a landmark opportunity for the Supreme Court to recognize the right of states to protect unborn children from the horrors of painful late-term abortions.”

Dannenfelser’s choice to invoke “late-term abortions” was pointed. Typically, the phrase refers to abortions performed after 21 weeks, but I’ve seen anti-abortion advocates in particular use “late term” in reference to abortions anywhere after 15 weeks. Crucially, there is no real definition or medical designation for what constitutes a late-term abortion, so it’s used somewhat haphazardly. Medical experts also criticize the term for implying that abortions are taking place after a pregnancy reaches “term” at 37 weeks—which does not happen—or a point in pregnancy referred to by obstetricians as “late term,” up to 41 weeks—which also does not happen.

Continued: https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/06/definition-late-term-abortions-mississippi-15-week-ban-supreme-court/

My patients shouldn’t have to fight this hard for an abortion. Will Biden get in the ring?

I deliver my patients' babies when needed, and perform their abortions when needed. Thankfully, my state treats all health care like health care.

Dr. Katherine Brown, Opinion contributor
Mar 7, 2021

I walk into the room and greet my patient with a smile. Six months earlier, I delivered her first baby by cesarean section after a long labor.

“How are you?” I ask. She assures me that she is doing fine, her daughter is thriving. She quickly takes out her phone and flips through a few recent photos. She smiles at me and tells me that she is just not ready for another baby. My patient is pregnant again and has made the decision to have an abortion. Just as I did when I delivered her daughter, I strive to hold a space of dignity and respect. I hold space for her and her emotions. I recognize that for her, she is making a difficult decision, but is doing so out of love and compassion.

Continued: https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/voices/2021/03/07/pro-choice-abortion-hyde-amendment-obgyn-biden-harris-column/4592699001/

07.03.2021

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barriers to abortion access

South Africa – Young women face agonising barriers to accessing abortion in rural areas

Among significant barriers to accessing abortion services, experts cite a lack of management support at health facilities, costs, fear of breach of confidentiality and stigma. Many of these barriers are compounded in rural areas.

By Tiyese Jeranji for Spotlight
14 February 2021

Onke Jezile, founder of Lethabo la Azania, a non-profit organisation that works with children and the youth in Engcobo in Eastern Cape, says pregnant women in rural areas seeking abortion services face an uphill battle.

“For us in the rural areas, we have to fight 20 or 30 times more to get services compared with our urban counterparts,” explains Jezile.

Continued: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2021-02-14-young-women-face-agonising-barriers-to-accessing-abortion-in-rural-areas/

Poverty and lack of awareness and access forcing many to resort to unsafe abortion

Even 19 years after legalisation, women’s struggle for safe abortion continues. As a result, they put their health at risk and are unable to exercise their rights, experts say.

Samiksha Baral
Published at : January 24, 2021

For months last year, Mina waited for the Covid-19 induced lockdown to end with bated breath.

When the government finally eased months of lockdown in July, Mina, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, was all set to run away from her home.

Mina had her own simple reason—she did not want to have the child she was carrying.

Continued: https://kathmandupost.com/health/2021/01/24/poverty-and-lack-of-awareness-and-access-forcing-many-to-resort-to-unsafe-abortion

Lack of South Auckland abortion services ‘unacceptable’

Local abortion services remain unavailable to people living in much of the sprawling South Auckland area - which has a population of close to 600,000 and encapsulates some of the most deprived suburbs of New Zealand - despite the issue being repeatedly raised for more than 12 years.

21 December 2020
Susan Strongman

People living within the Counties Manukau District Health Board (DHB) catchment who need an abortion must travel to the affluent central Auckland suburb of Greenlane. Experts say this creates an access barrier for South Auckland women.

Financial barriers created by the lack of a local service can include the cost of travel, childcare and taking time off work. For people living in Counties Manukau, where the population is younger, and more deprived than elsewhere in New Zealand, those costs can be significant. The area is also home to a high number of Pacific peoples, of whom 64 percent are 'highly deprived', according to Health Ministry data. The Counties Manukau DHB describes Pacific peoples' engagement with and access to health services when they need them as being "a challenge".

Continued: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/in-depth/433305/lack-of-south-auckland-abortion-services-unacceptable

The Future of Abortion Care Depends on Independent Providers

Today, there are 34 percent fewer independent clinics across the country than there were in 2012. The threats independent clinics face are harsh—which is why now more than ever, they need our support to continue meeting this moment.

12/11/2020
by NIKKI MADSEN

The toll of the COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating for families and communities across the country, including my own. But when I reflect back on 2020, amid all of the heartache, a moment of absolute joy stands out.

In early March, just days before the nationwide cascade of shutdowns and uncertainty, I stood arm-in-arm outside the Supreme Court with reproductive health, rights and justice advocates as we cheered on the fierce clinic staff at Hope Medical Group for Women, the Louisiana-based independent abortion care provider at the center of this year’s Supreme Court abortion case. Like other independent clinics (indies) before them, Hope was fighting for all of us that day.

Continued: https://msmagazine.com/2020/12/11/independent-abortion-clinics-covid-19-abortion-care-network/

How the states with the best access to abortion services compare to the worst

Andrea Michelson
Dec 8, 2020

A landmark Supreme Court case called Roe v. Wade protects the right to abortion without excessive government interference at the US federal level. But when it comes to state legislature, each jurisdiction has its own set of laws that affect access to abortion services.

Since the appointment of conservative and historically anti-abortion justice Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, states such as Mississippi have sent abortion rights cases to the highest court in hopes of setting a new precedent for bans and restrictions.

Continued: https://www.insider.com/us-states-with-best-access-to-abortion-compared-to-worst-2020-12

08.12.2020

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Center for Reproductive Rights

This Is Why Abortions Weren’t Available In South Dakota For The Past 7 Months

ELLY BELLE
NOVEMBER 20, 2020

With the Supreme Court taking a new direction with the addition of Amy Coney Barrett, many are concerned about Roe v. Wade and what will happen to abortion access. But in several states across the U.S., abortion is already largely inaccessible even if it’s technically legal. That’s become even more true during the pandemic, as many providers have had to completely shut down or haven’t had the workers to make carrying out abortions possible. In South Dakota, abortions have been entirely inaccessible in the state since March when the Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls halted all procedures.

Continued: https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/11/10183223/south-dakota-abortion-7-month-stop-covid-pandemic

Why Nepali society shouldn’t stigmatise safe abortion? Who should do what?

Sujata Karki
November 7, 2020

It is obvious that women can become pregnant before or after marriage if they are involved in a sexual relationship without using contraception. There is a strong social, cultural and religious belief in our society that women should not give birth to a child before marriage. But, willingly or unwillingly, many women get impregnated before marriage and are later forced to discontinue their pregnancy. If for any reason, unmarried women do not abort, there is a very high chance of killing the newborn baby due to the stigma in society.

But, there are other problems related to abortion in our society. Many people believe an abortion will make the women unable to get pregnant again. There is a moral debate between those who support and oppose it.

Continued: https://english.onlinekhabar.com/why-nepali-society-shouldnt-stigmatise-safe-abortion-who-should-do-what.html

07.11.2020

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Italy: Covid-19 Exacerbates Obstacles to Legal Abortion

Inadequate Measures Heighten Existing Risks for Health, Lives

July 30, 2020

(London) – Government inaction has left women and girls facing avoidable obstacles to accessing legal abortion in Italy during the Covid-19 pandemic, putting their health and lives at risk, Human Rights Watch said today.

The government’s failure to ensure clear pathways to essential, time-sensitive medical care during the pandemic caused interruptions to abortion services and prevented some women from accessing abortion within the legal time limit, exacerbating longstanding barriers to safe and legal abortion in Italy.

Continued: https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/07/30/italy-covid-19-exacerbates-obstacles-legal-abortion