The Quickie: Anti-Trans & Anti-Abortion Laws Upheld In Nebraska

Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: Nebraska judge upholds anti-trans and anti-abortion laws, a 13-year-old girl is denied abortion care in Mississippi, and Virginia voters head to the polls to protect abortion access.

ANTI-TRANS & ANTI-ABORTION LAWS UPHELD IN NEBRASKA; ACLU AND PLANNED PARENTHOOD TO APPEAL: On Friday, a County District Court judge in Nebraska issued an order siding with the attorney general’s office and rejecting abortion providers’ single-subject legal challenge to new restrictions on abortion and gender-affirming care for transgender youth. The case was brought by the ACLU, the ACLU of Nebraska, and Powers Law on behalf of Planned Parenthood of the Heartland and its medical director, Dr. Sarah Traxler. The lawsuit argues Nebraska state senators violated a state constitutional requirement that “no bill shall contain more than one subject” when they added an abortion ban after 12 weeks of pregnancy to a bill that restricted gender-related care for trans youth. ACLU and Planned Parenthood have already vowed to appeal the decision to a higher court. Ruth Richardson, CEO Planned Parenthood North Central States said:

“This decision is a devastating blow to Nebraskans’ fundamental right to make what should be private decisions between them and their doctors. This abortion ban disproportionately affects people in rural areas, people of color, people with low incomes, and young people, further widening already unacceptable health inequities. But, I want to be clear, this is not the end of this fight. We will appeal this decision and, in the meantime, continue to provide abortion before 12 weeks of pregnancy, as permitted by law. Nothing about this setback changes our commitment to standing up for the rights and health of all Nebraskans.”

More from the Omaha World-Herald and the Nebraska Examiner.
 

Trigger warning - this story includes mentions of rape, child sexual abuse

MISSISSIPPI GODDAM: Today, TIME published a heart wrenching account of a young girl from Mississippi, who at 13 years old was raped and became pregnant as a result of the assault. Because of the state’s abortion ban, and the high costs of travel to another state after the fall of Roe, her parent was unable to take her out of state for an abortion, leading the child to carry her pregnancy to term.

The article also highlights the devastating impact Mississippi’s abortion ban is expected to have on the health care system and the lack of medical students who want to go to the state to practice.

“Early data suggests the Dobbs decision will make this problem worse. Younger doctors and medical students say they don't want to move to states with abortion restrictions. When Emory University researcher Ariana Traub surveyed almost 500 third- and fourth-year medical students in 2022, close to 80% said that abortion laws influenced where they planned to apply to residency. Nearly 60% said they were unlikely to apply to any residency programs in states with abortion restrictions. Traub had assumed that abortion would be most important to students studying obstetrics, but was surprised to find that three-quarters of students across all medical specialties said that Dobbs was affecting their residency decisions.”

Read the story here.
 

VIRGINIA VOTERS DETERMINED TO HOLD THE LINE ON ABORTION ACCESS: This November, Virginia voters will head to the polls to vote in House of Delegates and State Senate races. The outcome of this election will determine abortion access in Virginia, and subsequently across the South. Virginia is essentially the only state in the Southeast without an existing or pending abortion ban on the books, making this election even more consequential. In an editorial this weekend, The Virginian-Pilot urged voters to make sure abortion remains accessible in the state writing, “Virginia should remain a place where a woman and her doctor can make reproductive health decisions based on their individual circumstances and needs. The parties have been clear about their intentions, and voters should respond accordingly.” Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia has endorsed 108 candidates this cycle who promise to further protect access in Virginia and ensure that the state can continue to hold the line in the South.

Read more at The Virginian-Pilot