posted
I'm surprised no one has posted anything about this. Or did I miss it?
quote: WASHINGTON (AFP) - The battle over abortion rights in the United States moved into a new stage after the legislature in the state of South Dakota, emboldened by the new make-up of the US Supreme Court, passed a sweeping ban on the termination of pregnancies.
quote: Although it occurred in a sparsely populated state, the vote has sent a tremor through the whole women's rights community because it is expected to set in motion a series of events that could lead to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, a bedrock 1973 ruling by the US Supreme Court that made abortion legal.
Promoters of the ban don't deny they aim much higher than South Dakota, a rural and socially conservative state which even today has only one abortion clinic.
posted
I saw that - and sadly it's not a big surprise, given today's political climate. These are hard times for individual's civil rights.
It will be interesting to see what happens when it gets to the Supreme Court, because I think that in the end that is where the law will be upheld or be defeated.
Posts: 337 | Registered: Nov 2005
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posted
While I find this to be an interesting, and extremely troubling, development, I ultimately decided that getting involved in yet another abortion thread wouldn't be productive.
Abortion and abortion rights have been debated on these boards to the point where entire discussions can be cut and pasted from past threads to fit almost any statement.
Posts: 1480 | Registered: Dec 2004
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posted
This is definitely interesting, let's see how it develops as it moves through the court systems.
But really, is anyone suprised? As soon as the court changed, we all knew someone was going to initiate a challenge to abortion rights to gauge where the court stood. Perhaps it hasn't gotten that much attention because it was expected.
The article made one point that is very important in many states, not just South Dakota: access. Abortion can be legal but still not available if there is no one to provide it. Do some googling of the "graying of abortion providers" and you'll find information on how much older the typical abortion provider is than any other medical specialty and how few young doctors are willing to enter the profession. South Dakota isn't the only state with one abortion facility. Mississippi had two until a provider lost his license to practice in both MS and AL last year and it closed. So did a clinic in Alabama.
There are lots of reasons why doctors don't want to go into the profession, some are afraid of the social stigma or even of threats by extremists. A major factor is money, keeping abortions affordable for people when insurance usually doesn't cover it means that there isn't much to pay the provider with. It's a repetitive, somewhat unchallenging field.
If the trend continues though, it may be very difficult for someone to get an abortion, even if it remains legal.
Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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posted
The entire state of Mississippi has one provider????
I really know very little about the logistical aspects. When you say "so few young doctors are willing to enter the profession", do you mean doctors who provide abortions as their primary service? Are there other doctors who will provide that service, but are not in an "abortion clinic" type practice? Or do you mean that doctors who are OB/GYN types won't do it at all?
Posts: 1522 | Registered: Nov 2005
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quote:Since 1982, the number of abortion providers in the U.S. has fallen by 37% (1). There are many factors that contribute to the provider shortage, including:
Lack of training - Students are graduating from medical school with little or no abortion education, and only 5% of abortions happen in hospitals, where most medical students and residents are trained (1). As a result, many new doctors are not equipped with the skills they need to provide women with the full spectrum of reproductive health care.
“Graying of Abortion Providers” - Over half (57%) of all ob/gyns who perform abortion are 50 years of age or older (7). Many of today’s abortion providers are approaching or have reached retirement age, and few doctors have been trained to replace them.
Commitment - Many of today’s providers are pioneers whose commitment to safe, legal abortion was shaped by having witnessed the effects of botched illegal or self-induced abortions. Younger physicians have not been faced with the spectre of unsafe abortion.
Fear - Anti-choice tactics of intimidation, harassment and violence have caused doctors and hospitals to shy away from offering abortion services, and have scared students and residents away from pursuing education in abortion training.
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