The Quickie: PPFA VP of Abortion Access Discusses Barriers to Providing Care
For Immediate Release: Dec. 15, 2022
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: PPFA VP discusses barriers to providing abortion care, Gov. Whitmer signs directive to ensure compliance with MI Prop 3, study finds that states that banned abortion already had worse rates of maternal death and fewer doctors, and people overwhelmingly Googled how to fight for abortion rights in 2022!
PPFA VP OF ABORTION ACCESS DISCUSSES BARRIERS TO PROVIDING CARE: Planned Parenthood VP of Abortion Access Danika Severino Wynn joined economist Caitlin Myers and Idaho State Rep. Lauren Necochea for a panel with ABC Australia on health care challenges following the overturning of Roe. Danika shed light on the dangers that reproductive health providers have faced with giving lifesaving care due to complicated abortion bans in several states:
“There’s an increase in threats of violence and we have seen a shift towards more aggressive behavior from legislators, policy makers, and those in power, especially in states where bans are at play. The fear and level of concern about the ability to provide care to people even outside of abortion, for example, with pregnancy that is in question or in jeopardy like an ectopic pregnancy, there are places where there are delays in lifesaving care that needs to be provided for an incredibly dangerous pregnancy because the laws that are in place make it very, very hard to know what could be considered illegal. The bottom line for us is that no medical provider should be harassed, intimidated, or criminalized for delivering essential health care to patients.”
Listen to the interview here.
GOV. WHITMER SIGNS DIRECTIVE TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH PROP 3 IN MICHIGAN: Surrounded by local leaders of the abortion rights movement, including Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer yesterday signed a directive to ensure compliance with Proposition 3, the amendment that Michigan voters approved in November to enshrine reproductive freedom, including abortion rights, in the state constitution. The constitutional amendment officially takes effect on December 24, and the directive ensures state rules and regulations align with the measure, including by preventing Michigan state departments from cooperating with other states’ attempts to prosecute people seeking abortion care in Michigan.
“Proposal 3 created an opportunity for Michiganders to decide for Michigan,” said Nicole Wells Stallworth, executive director of Planned Parenthood Advocates of Michigan. “And as a result, we made Michigan one of the first states in the country to pass a citizen-led initiative constitutional amendment to protect abortion rights and restore the promise of Roe here in Michigan."
Photo: Andrew Roth / Michigan Advance
Read more from Michigan Advance and Michigan Radio.
STUDY FINDS STATES THAT BANNED ABORTION ALREADY HAD HIGH MATERNAL DEATH RATES AND FEWER DOCTORS: A new study by the Commonwealth Fund found that states that imposed strict abortion bans this year were already more likely to have significantly higher maternal and infant mortality rates and fewer doctors to provide care to patients. The statistics are stark: In 2020, maternal deaths were 62% higher in states that would eventually pass abortion restrictions compared to states where abortion is accessible. Similarly, of the 12 states that have not expanded Medicaid, 10 also impose strict abortion bans.
"Compared with their counterparts in other states, women of reproductive age and birthing people in states with current or proposed abortion bans have more limited access to affordable health insurance coverage, worse health outcomes, and lower access to maternity care providers," according to the study.
Read the study here and read more at ABC.
GOOGLING FOR THE CAUSE: Yesterday, Google released its Year in Search 2022, in which “how to help abortion rights” was the third most searched phrase under the “How to” category this year in the United States. The overwhelming majority of the country supports legal abortion, and after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, people across the country were energized to fight for abortion rights and sought out resources to do so.
