We're excited to bring you U.S. Repro Matters, your go-to source for the latest updates on reproductive health and rights in the U.S. This week, the health and lives of pregnant people in Texas are at risk yet again, Ohio voters resoundingly reject a proposal that would have a notable impact on reproductive rights in the state, and other top news on U.S. reproductive rights. |
Repro News This Week: August 11 |
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The case was brought by the Center on behalf of 13 Texans denied abortions and two obstetrician gynecologists (OB-GYNs) to clarify what constitutes “medical emergencies” under the state’s extreme abortion bans.
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Judge Jessica Mangrum’s Aug. 4 ruling clarified the bans’ medical exception, enabling physicians to use their “good faith judgment,” in consultation with their pregnant patients, to determine when they need an abortion to preserve their health or their life. The ruling also found S.B. 8, a vigilante bounty-hunting abortion ban, unconstitutional.
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However, the state’s attorneys immediately appealed the ruling to the Texas Supreme Court, putting the injunction on hold while appeals proceed.
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Ohio voters rejected a proposal that would have made it more difficult to protect abortion rights. |
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Voters weighed in on Aug. 8 on the controversial measure, which would have required constitutional amendments to pass with at least 60% of votes instead of a simple majority. The proposal’s resounding defeat means the simple majority threshold will remain in place.
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The measure went to voters just three months before a proposal to protect abortion rights will appear on the ballot. Two anti-abortion advocates, including a former state representative, have filed a lawsuit asking the Ohio Supreme Court to stop the ballot measure from going to voters in November.
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The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a law Aug. 1 that forces patients to meet with a doctor in person before they are able to obtain an abortion, including medication abortion that had been available via telemedicine. The law, which has been blocked since 2021, takes effect at the end of August.
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Abortion care is already difficult to access in the U.S. territory, where the last remaining abortion provider retired in 2018. Two Hawaii-based doctors have been providing abortion care via telemedicine to those living in Guam.
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If Guam residents were to lose access to telehealth abortion care entirely, they would be forced to travel 4,000 miles each way to Hawaii just to obtain these services.
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The March of Dimes’ new report “Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts Across the U.S.” found that the number of counties without a hospital or birth center offering obstetric care is on the rise. Many of the states that have expansive maternity care deserts are also ones that now restrict abortion.
In Texas and Idaho, about 46% and 30% of each state are considered maternity care deserts, respectively. Idaho alone saw several labor and delivery units close this year, including one hospital that pointed to the state’s total abortion ban as a reason for the shutdown in obstetrical services. |
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“It’s absolutely appalling that the state would appeal this ruling—a ruling meant to save women’s lives. It’s never been clearer that the term ‘pro-life’ is a complete misnomer. What our plaintiffs went through was pure torture, and the state is hell bent on making sure that kind of suffering continues.” - Molly Duane, senior staff attorney, Center for Reproductive Rights |
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The Center for Reproductive Rights uses the power of law to advance
reproductive rights as fundamental human rights around the world. © Center for Reproductive Rights |
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