One week ago, Florida's 6-week abortion ban went into effect. And that's a really big deal.
Until last week, Florida law allowed abortions up to 15 weeks of pregnancy — which wasn't great, but at least patients from Florida and surrounding states had somewhere to get care. After
Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, Florida saw a
huge increase in abortion patients, many of whom came from states with total bans or near-total bans. In fact,
in 2023, 1 of every 3 abortions in the South, and 1 in 12 nationwide, happened in Florida.
The harm of this new 6-week ban is not limited to people in Florida. It will endanger people for hundreds and hundreds of miles in dozens of states.
The only silver lining here is that in November Florida voters have a chance to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution. Amendment 4 will need at least 60% of voters in favor to pass — a very high threshold that is not required in most states. But
time and time again when abortion is on the ballot, the right to abortion wins.
Learn about Floridians Protecting Freedom here.
In the meantime, I won't lie to you. A lot of people will suffer. Thousands of people won't be able to get the care they need. And that makes me sick.
