We learn so much in medical school: How our bodies work, and how easily things can go wrong. We also learn how to diagnose and treat illnesses, and how to keep people safe and healthy.

But the big lesson, the one we learn again and again from our very first day of training, and the one I try to bring with me to work every single day: Put patients first. Always.

As a doctor who provides abortion care, I stay focused on serving my patients in the same way a cardiologist or any other specialist does. In that way, reproductive health care is not any different from other branches of medicine. And just as prenatal care, vasectomies, and gender‑affirming therapy are key parts of my reproductive health practice at Planned Parenthood of South, East and North Florida, so too is abortion.

It is my job to meet patients wherever they are, and I love that I get to be there for them as they navigate these important medical decisions. My duty is to provide my patients with whatever information they need and whatever care is right for them, free from shame and stigma. Working first in North Carolina and now in Florida, I'm seeing firsthand what it's like when our government forces physicians to betray that duty.

The new abortion ban in Florida has already cut off so many patients from care — and not just Floridians. Now, people from Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and other states who previously managed to travel to us over the past two years will be forced to travel even greater distances to access this essential care. Every abortion ban and restriction means that doctors like me simply can't help patients get the care that's right for them.

I need everyone to hear this: If the Supreme Court restricts access to mifepristone, one of two medicines commonly used for medication abortion, it will be an unimaginable reality. Patients nationwide will be harmed.

The science is extremely clear: Mifepristone is a safe and effective medicine. We have decades' worth of data and millions of patients' experiences showing that this is a great way for people to get the reproductive care they need.

The additional rules, regulations, and restrictions that the Supreme Court is considering placing on mifepristone are not based on science or medicine. They are an attempt to replace evidence‑backed medical care with a political agenda that is completely devoid of what we know to be true about mifepristone: That it is a very safe and rigorously tested medicine.

For me, this Supreme Court case is just one more in a long line of attacks on my patients' ability to access the medical care that they need and deserve. It is nothing more than a dishonest attempt to shame and marginalize patients. I fear that people who are already the most marginalized by our health care system will be the most harmed by these additional barriers to care.

The constant struggle to protect access to care can be exhausting. And if like me, you have trouble keeping track of all the details — what's happening in which state, the Supreme Court cases on mifepristone and emergency room care for pregnant people, and the Biden administration's efforts to protect access, just to name a few — you're not alone.

All you have to remember is that big overarching lesson taught to us in medical school and residency: We put patients first, always.

On behalf of the doctors, nurses, and other medical staff at Planned Parenthood health centers, thank you for being a part of our movement.

Dr. Chelsea Daniels, Family Physician & Abortion Provider
Planned Parenthood of South, East and North Florida for Planned Parenthood Federation of America