On June 24th, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case that overturned the constitutional right to abortion, reversing 50 years of legal abortion under Roe v. Wade. Now, it’s clear that the effects of Dobbs extends far beyond people seeking abortion.
Since the Dobbs decision overturned federal abortion rights, states have taken swift action to stop people seeking abortion for a variety of health, economic or other personal reasons. Since the decision was rendered, 66 clinics in 14 states have stopped providing abortions, and one third of those have closed completely.
A recent study estimates that more than 36 million women are living in states that either have a ban or are likely to ban abortion in the coming years. Of this number, over 15 million are women of color, who are both more likely to lack health care coverage and more likely to need abortion services than their white counterparts.
In West Virginia, 375,000 women of reproductive age have lost abortion access through the state’s near-total ban, including 34,000 women of color.
The bans are leading to a delay in care, as many patients now must get care that is no longer available in their home states. Doctors and medical residents also have to traverse greater distances to get the training they need to provide reproductive health services. More than 1,100 current resident doctors in 56 obstetrics and gynecology programs cannot access abortion training in their states because of abortion restrictions. Already, more than half of OB/GYNs say the Dobbs decision makes it harder to attract new doctors to the field. That will have an effect on women who seek abortion, as well as those looking for maternity and birthing services.
In fact, the abortion bans are affecting all kinds of professions, as they increasingly figure in the decision about where young people decide to attend college, work and settle down. Enrollment at West Virginia University is decreasing every year, and this ban on reproductive care will deter out-of-state medical students from enrolling. Our state was already experiencing problems with access to OB/GYN care in rural areas, which will be made even worse by these new restrictive policies.
And, abortion access also has long-term effects on our economic security and prosperity. Abortion access increases labor force participation, educational attainment, earnings and reduces child poverty — with particularly notable gains for Black women, according to American Progress. Denying and delaying abortion has long-term negative consequences for health and economic security for entire families.
It’s clear, after a year, that banning abortion, shuttering clinics and making abortion into a crime doesn’t just affect women seeking abortion. Millions more women who need health care services, like STD screening, birth control, cancer screenings, prenatal and maternity care, can’t get services when clinics are shut down and doctors flee states because of harsh threats of punishment for advising or treating people who seek abortions.
In states that have included criminal punishment for abortion providers in their bans, doctors and medical students are going elsewhere to work or train, forcing some maternity wards to close completely as a result. After the closure of the only maternity ward in Bonner County, Idaho, for example, expectant mothers will be forced to drive 45 minutes to give birth in the next-closest hospital.
The effect of abortion bans will be worse in rural states, like West Virginia, where there already are significant challenges in accessing health care because of distance, poverty and the sparse availability of providers. Patients in emergency situations are forced to the brink of death before a doctor can legally intervene. Mothers are forced to watch their babies die from severe birth defects after being denied abortions.
As some states navigate the continuing surge of bans and restrictions on abortion services, others will take advanced action to protect and expand access, so that people can have the freedom to make the best decisions for themselves and their families without interference and punishment. Every American has a stake in protecting access to abortion, whether they will seek abortion or not.
These are the kinds of societal disruptions and unintended consequences that happen when our conservative majority of policymakers begin to legislate their moral and religious dogma into our state’s health policies.
There is an election coming up next year for the full House of Delegates, half the Senate, governor, attorney general and president. If you don’t like the direction we’re heading, make your voice heard in the primary and general elections, and support candidates who reflect your values.
Gary Zuckett is executive director of West Virginia Citizen Action and the Citizen Action Education Fund.
