The Quickie: Despite Consistent Abortion Numbers Nationally, Access Is Still In Crisis

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: A new report from WeCount, the dangers of “personhood” laws, Montana permanently blocks abortion restrictions, and Biden administration issues a rule allowing limited abortion access to veterans.

DESPITE CONSISTENT ABORTION NUMBERS NATIONALLY, ACCESS IS STILL IN CRISIS: This week, the Society of Family Planning released its latest WeCount report with data showing a consistent number of abortions happening in the US in the 15 months post-Dobbs, compared to pre-Dobbs. This is despite the ongoing abortion access crisis which has severely disrupted people’s access to abortion care, particularly those living in states with abortion bans and restrictions.

New in the report is data showing that telehealth abortions — through brick-and-mortar clinics that provide telehealth and through virtual-only providers — comprise 16% of all abortion care across the country.

Alison Norris, MD, Ph.D, #WeCount co-chair and professor at The Ohio State University College of Public Health, provides important context around the data: “#WeCount shows that even when a state bans abortion, people continue to need and seek abortion care. We can’t let the overall consistent number of abortions nationally obscure the incredible unmet need and disastrous impact of abortion bans on people who already have the least access.”

Abortion access has been decimated in states with abortion bans, which increases the burden on patients living in those states and on providers in states with access. Since April 2022, more than 120,000 people have been unable to get abortion care from a health care provider in the state they live in.

Read more on AP and the full report here.

 

NEW MEMO: THE DANGERS OF “FETAL PERSONHOOD” LAWS: As IVF patients and providers in Alabama continue to grapple with the state Supreme Court ruling declaring that embryos are children, the growing threat of  “fetal personhood” laws on reproductive health care nationwide has never been more clear. Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers have never been satisfied with overturning Roe v. Wade. For more than 40 years, they’ve tried to codify the dangerous idea that from the moment of fertilization, an embryo or fetus should be legally recognized as a person with constitutional rights. A new memo from Planned Parenthood Action Fund details ongoing attacks at the state and federal levels as abortion opponents work to embed “personhood”  language in health care bills, the tax code, and critical safety net programs — all under the guise of supporting families and pregnant people. 

During the 2024 state legislative session, more than 40 bills with “personhood” language across 16 states have been proposed, including legislation allowing pregnant people to seek and receive child support and tax credits for embryos and fetuses. Anti-abortion members of Congress have also pushed “fetal personhood” attacks for years, and they aren’t stopping. Currently, 125 members in the House, including Speaker Mike Johnson, support the Life at Conception Act. As the attacks continue, the real effect of “personhood” language is clear: to control people’s bodies, limit their health care choices, and criminalize people for having abortions.

Read the full memo here.

 

MONTANA BLOCKS MULTIPLE ABORTION RESTRICTIONS PERMANENTLY: Yesterday, a trial court granted Planned Parenthood of Montana’s motion for summary judgment blocking a slate of anti-abortion laws including : a 20-week abortion ban; restrictions on medication abortions, including a ban on direct-to-patient telehealth medication abortions; and a requirement that providers ask patients if they would like to see and listen to an ultrasound. The ruling will permanently prevent these restrictions from going into effect, ensuring that Montanans will continue to be able to access abortion without interference from politicians. Martha Fuller, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Montana celebrated the news saying: “We are relieved that Montanans will no longer live with the threat of these harmful restrictions taking effect. But make no mistake, our fight continues. For years anti-abortion politicians at all levels of government have made banning abortion their number one priority, despite the current protection held in our state constitution…We will never stop working to ensure that all Montanans and those who are forced to travel here for care can access the care they need.”

Read more from the AP and the Montana Free Press.

 

BIDEN ADMINISTRATION FINALIZES HISTORIC RULE THAT ALLOWED LIMITED ABORTION ACCESS FOR VETERANS: Today, the Biden administration issued a final rule that allows the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to continue providing veterans and their eligible dependents with abortion care in cases of rape, incest, or when the pregnant person’s health or life is at risk. With this new rule, VA clinics will also continue to be able to provide comprehensive counseling and information on pregnancy options — including abortion — to all veterans and eligible dependents. Planned Parenthood CEO and President Alexis McGill Johnson praised the historic move when it first took effect on an interim basis in September 2022 saying, “Our veterans have put their lives on the line for this country and should at the very least be able to make decisions about their own bodies. This is an important step towards treating our veterans with the respect and dignity they deserve.” In Congress, anti-abortion politicians have made numerous attempts to overturn this important policy as part of ongoing coordinated efforts to attack sexual and reproductive rights. 

Read more about the interim September 2022 rule here.