‘How sick is sick enough?’ Abortion bans leave providers, patients questioning when care is OK

Saturday, September 2, 2023
By Elise Catrion Gregg | News21

AUSTIN, Texas — Amanda and Josh Zurawski sit in the house they bought last year, the dream home they intended to share with their future daughter.

They’ve told their story too many times now, but they brace themselves to tell it once more — from a room just above the backyard where they will one day plant a tree in memory of the baby who never made it home.
It will be a willow, in honor of the name they chose for their little girl.

Continued: https://nondoc.com/2023/09/02/how-sick-is-sick-enough-abortion-bans-leave-providers-patients-questioning-when-care-is-ok/


Abortion access could continue to change in year 2 after the overturn of Roe v. Wade

July 3, 2023
Selena Simmons-Duffin

From the moment the Supreme Court decision overturning the right to an abortion was leaked last spring, researchers and pundits began to predict the consequences.

A year later, data is beginning to bring the real-life effects into focus. Over a dozen states have near total abortion bans, with several more state bans in the works. At least 26 clinics have closed. In Texas, nearly 10,000 more babies were born in the state since its 2021 "heartbeat bill" took effect.

Continued: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2023/07/03/1185849391/abortion-access-could-continue-to-change-in-year-2-after-the-overturn-of-roe-v-w


66 clinics stopped providing abortions in the 100 days since Roe fell

October 6, 2022
Selena Simmons-Duffin

In the 100 days since the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade, 66 clinics in the U.S. stopped providing abortion. That's according to a new analysis published Thursday by the Guttmacher Institute, assessing abortion access in the 15 states that have banned or severely restricted access to abortion.

"Prior to Roe being overturned, these 15 states had 79 clinics that provided abortion care," says Rachel Jones, a principal research scientist at Guttmacher. "We found that 100 days later, this was down to 13."

Continued: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/10/06/1127105378/66-clinics-stopped-providing-abortions-in-the-100-days-since-roe-fell


‘Abortion absolutely is health care,’ U.S. House panel told as GOP pursues nationwide ban

By John L. Micek
September 29, 2022

A nationwide abortion ban would widen disparities in health care and drive up the maternal mortality rate, particularly among Black women, physicians and advocates told a U.S. House panel on Thursday.

“Women’s progress has always been inextricably linked with the ability to control our own bodies,” Jocelyn Frye, the president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, told members of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform during a three-hour-plus hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building.

Continued: https://www.marylandmatters.org/2022/09/29/abortion-absolutely-is-health-care-u-s-house-panel-told-as-gop-pursues-nationwide-ban/


’I need an abortion’: The text that gets pills sent in secret

Leire Ventas, BBC News Mundo, Los Angeles
Aug 25, 2022

Anna*, 23, knew that she could not have another child. She also knew that she wouldn't get an abortion in Texas, where she lives, as the state has one of the strictest abortion laws in the United States.

So the mother of a four-month-old turned to social media to search for solutions. She found a number online, and sent a desperate text on WhatsApp: "I need an abortion".

Continued: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-61874921


Doctors worry that online misinformation will push abortion-seekers toward ineffective, dangerous methods

By Naomi Thomas, CNN
Wed July 13, 2022

After a US Supreme Court draft decision on Roe v. Wade was leaked in May, Dr. Joshua Trebach noticed a disturbing turn in the online conversation around abortion.

"I started seeing things on social media, things like TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, people saying 'oh, if Roe v. Wade does get overturned, here are some secret, sneaky ways that you can drink some tea and have an abortion,' " Trebach said.

Continued: https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/13/health/abortion-misinformation-social-media/index.html


“Chaos” for patients and providers after US abortion ruling

Susan Jaffe
July 09, 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01268-5
The Lancet - WORLD REPORT| VOLUME 400, ISSUE 10346, P85-86, JULY 09, 2022

The US Supreme Court's bombshell decision overturning Roe v Wade on June 24, 2022, assures Americans that each state can choose whether and under what conditions its residents have a right to a safe and legal abortion. So far, the result is an incoherent and volatile jumble: 16 states have severely restricted or banned the procedure and bans in ten more states are likely to take effect in a matter of weeks. Providers who violate the laws can face as much as 10 years in prison. However, in 22 Democrat-led states and the District of Columbia, abortion access is protected. Several claim to be abortion sanctuaries as they prepare for an influx of health-care refugees who can afford to travel for an abortion no longer available at home.

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(22)01268-5/fulltext


Are ‘herbal abortions’ safe? Doctors warn against viral TikTok trend following Roe v Wade overturn

Rachel Ann Rodrigues
Jul 08, 2022

Abortions induced by ingesting unregulated herbal concoctions can be dangerous, but do-it-yourself recipes for self-regulated miscarriages have been doing the rounds on TikTok, and doctors are warning against it.

These controversial and potentially fatal videos have been gaining momentum since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24 - a landmark ruling that dismantled the constitutional right to abortion.

https://www.sportskeeda.com/pop-culture/are-herbal-abortions-safe-doctors-warn-viral-tiktok-trend-following-roe-v-wade-overturn


USA – Self-induced abortions can raise medical — and legal — questions for doctors

July 7, 2022
Sarah McCammon

WASHINGTON, D.C. — As abortion becomes more difficult — or impossible — to access in many states, some patients are buying pills online and managing the process on their own. That can create new questions for healthcare providers about how to protect their patients – and themselves – if questions or complications arise.

Unlike in years before Roe v. Wade in 1973, when women sometimes died from seeking unsafe and illegal abortions, Dr. Nisha Verma says patients now have more options.

https://www.npr.org/2022/07/07/1110165323/self-induced-abortions-can-raise-medical-and-legal-questions-for-doctors


USA – Demand for abortion providers is expected to surge in some states. Doctors and nurses turned to TikTok to offer help

By Naomi Thomas, CNN
Mon July 4, 2022

After the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, medical professionals across the country are using their TikTok accounts to show support and offer help to obstetricians and gynecologists who may be facing an increased demand for abortion care in states where the procedure is still legal.

Set to a song by the Chainsmokers with the lyrics "if we go down, then we go down together," professionals across fields of medicine are listing the skills they have that can be utilized to assist in that care.

Continued: https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/04/health/tiktok-medical-professionals-abortion-assistance/index.html