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Two years ago, this week, the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision, which protected the right to have an abortion. As a result, varying levels of state abortion restrictions and bans have swept the country. This has forced millions of women to travel across state lines or go online to obtain prescription drugs to access an abortion.
But what does the data show about the ripple effects of this decision?
Here’s what we know
Currently, 14 states have enacted near-total abortion bans. Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida have banned abortion past six weeks of pregnancy.
While all states allow for abortions in cases of medical emergencies, abortion providers have said the language is not clear or too vague and can change by state. Due to the harsh political rhetoric around medically necessary abortion care coming from the right, many physicians fear they will lose their medical licenses, and face lawsuits, or criminal felony charges.
Texas in particular allows abortions when, “in the exercise of reasonable medical judgment,” a pregnant person faces a “life-threatening physical condition aggravated by, caused by, or arising from a pregnancy that places the female at risk of death or poses a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function unless the abortion is performed or induced.”
But there have been unintended consequences. Since Texas’ abortion ban became law on Sept 1, 2021, infant deaths have increased by nearly 13%, according to a new study published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics. In 2021, Texas had 1,985 infant deaths, but the number jumped to 2,240 deaths in 2022. Throughout the country, infant mortality increased by less than 2% during the same period.
Less than two weeks ago, the Supreme Court dismissed a case that challenged the Food and Drug Administration’s approach to regulating the abortion pill mifepristone. The ruling will continue to allow abortion pills to be mailed to patients without an in-person doctor’s visit.
The unanimous decision mirrors the viewpoint of many Americans across the country. In a May report by the Pew Research Center, most Americans, regardless of gender, age, race, and political affiliation, say medication abortion should be legal in their states. More than 50% of Black Americans surveyed agreed.
Here’s what Black women say
Ahead of the second anniversary of the Dobbs decision, the Intersections of Our Lives organization released a 44-page report about what women of color think about the upcoming election, what’s at stake, and abortion access. Dr. Regina Davis Moss, president of In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda, which coproduced the report, spoke with a panel of journalists last week.
“Reproductive justice is absolutely a racial issue,” she says. “Dismantling systemic racism is at the core of the reproductive justice framework.”
Black, Latina/x, Asian American, and Pacific Islander women were surveyed on topics like birth control access, legal abortion, medication abortion, IVF, and maternal deaths. When asked how important it is for Congress to address these issues, 91% of Black women surveyed said it’s very or extremely important to address the high rates of maternal deaths.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Black women are 3 times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than white women.
With the presidential election just months away, rising costs, affordable housing, health care, gun violence prevention, abortion, and women’s rights are some of the top concerns for women of color.
“We know that Black women are one of the largest voting blocks in the American electorate,” Davis Moss said. “We play a decisive role in this year’s as we have in previous elections. It’s going to be very important that policymakers speak to our issues … and take us seriously.”
Seventy-four percent of Black women surveyed said abortion is a critical voting issue in the 2024 election.
Respondents emphasized that it’s not enough to make abortion legal; it needs to be accessible and affordable. “Women of color disproportionately experience barriers to reproductive health care,” Davis Moss said.
In previous reporting by Word In Black, Dr. Raegan McDonald-Mosley spoke about the barriers people face when trying to access reproductive health care. With so much misinformation in the sexual and reproductive health care space, she said, it can be challenging for folks to know where to get proper care.
Overall, the data shows that women of color vehemently support abortion access. About 50% of Black, AAPI, and Latina/x women say abortions should be legal, available, and subject to limited regulation.
“I think this reinforces that we are very aligned as communities, that are often siloed or pitted against each other, unfortunately, by politicians because of the scarce and poorly distributed resources,” said Lupe M. Rodriguez, executive director of National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice. “Our communities have been discussed as low propensity voters. The fact is our communities are ready to vote … but we really just need investment and attention to issues that matter to us.”
Here’s some resources
- Intersections of Our Lives is a collaboration of three organizations representing women of color focused on addressing civil rights, justice, reproductive health, and equality issues.
- Bedsider provides birth control information, sex tips, and healthy relationship advice.
- #AskDr.Raegan is a social media series providing evidence-based, judgment-free information about sexual health directly to young people.
- Power to Decide provides trusted, high-quality, accurate information—backed by research—on sexual health and contraceptive methods so young people can make informed decisions.
