In Texas, Oklahoma, Women Turned Away Because Of Coronavirus Abortion Bans
RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:
A growing number of states that are led by Republican governors have been trying to ban abortion during the coronavirus pandemic. They say the procedures should be suspended during the outbreak to help preserve medical supplies. That includes surgical masks and hospital gowns. Federal courts have blocked these orders in Ohio and Alabama, but in at least a couple of states, including Texas and Oklahoma, hundreds of patients are being turned away. Here's NPR's Sarah McCammon.
SARAH MCCAMMON, BYLINE: The doors at the Trust Women clinic in Oklahoma City were locked on Tuesday when Megan (ph) arrived for her appointment. Over the phone, a clinic worker told her the news - they had to shut down because of an order from Governor Kevin Stitt banning most abortions.
MEGAN: And immediately, I just, like, broke down 'cause, like, what am I going to do? You know, I just lost my job 'cause the coronavirus. Like, I already have a 10-month-old daughter. I don't know what I'm going to do.
MCCAMMON: Megan is 30 and has two kids. She asked us not to use her last name because she's concerned about how her family would react to her seeking an abortion. Megan says she was able to travel the next day to a clinic in Wichita, Kan. She doesn't have a reliable car, so a friend drove her there, 2 1/2 hours each way.
MEGAN: There was so many people there from so many different states. And I only think about how many couldn't make it.
MCCAMMON: In Texas, after a federal appeals court upheld an abortion ban, reproductive rights groups say hundreds of patients have been turned away.
BECCA WALKER: It's panic. It's panic because they know that they need this now possibly more than ever.
MCCAMMON: Becca Walker is a counselor at Southwestern Women's Surgery Center in Dallas.
WALKER: Sometimes, you're just guiding them through breathing on the phone because it's such a moment of panic and crisis for them. And then you have to give them their referral, and the next referral is not good news.
MCCAMMON: Walker has been referring patients to clinics in New Mexico or Kansas if they can make the trip. Abortion rights opponents argue the bans are necessary and appropriate during a pandemic. Dr. Christina Francis is an OB-GYN in Indiana and board chair at the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
CHRISTINA FRANCIS: Abortion is not essential health care. It doesn't treat a disease process. It's a social solution. And there are other solutions that we can provide to women who find themselves in very scary and uncertain circumstances right now.
MCCAMMON: Many doctors say denying an abortion can put patients at risk. The American Medical Association released a statement accusing some elected officials of, quote, "exploiting this moment," saying the decision should be left to patients and doctors. A physician at the Dallas clinic told NPR that some patients who've been turned away there have threatened to harm themselves. Dr. Bhavik Kumar, who provides abortion services at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Houston, says many feel desperate enough to consider dangerous home remedies.
BHAVIK KUMAR: I think the scary part is a lot of my patients are asking us what they can do themselves, how they can use things at home, different herbs or vitamins or objects to help them not be pregnant. They are scared.
MCCAMMON: Legal challenges are ongoing in multiple states where officials have tried to prohibit abortion during the coronavirus pandemic. A hearing on Oklahoma's ban is scheduled for this afternoon in federal court in Oklahoma City, and the issue could make its way all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court. Sarah McCammon, NPR News.
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