Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
A Year Without Roe: Cascade Of Bans, Legal Fights Shape Abortion Access
USA Today: 'Incalculable' Impact: Three Ways The Supreme Court Abortion Decision Changed The USA
When the Supreme Court handed down its watershed abortion decision last year to overturn Roe v. Wade, the five conservative justices in the majority were not blind to the upheaval the ruling might spark across the nation. But back then, no one knew exactly what the response might look like. “We do not pretend to know how our political system or society will respond to today’s decision,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the majority. ... Only rarely has a Supreme Court decision had such a profound impact so quickly on the lives of so many people. “The impact has been incalculable,” said Sara Rosenbaum, a professor of health law and policy at George Washington University. “It's like somebody dropped a nuclear bomb into public health.”(Fritze, 6/22)
Politico: 10 Things We’ve Learned About Abortion In The Year Since Roe Fell
Several developments defied predictions: Conservative lawmakers at the state and federal levels have struggled to agree on the parameters of abortion bans, while progressive groups have clashed over how far to go in expanding access. Doctors in states with bans have reported hesitancy around providing even legal care because of vague new policies and the fear of prosecution. Voters in Kansas, Kentucky and Montana rejected attempts to curtail access, and Democrats held the Senate in part because of their promise to protect abortion rights. With the legal and political landscape still roiling, here are 10 surprises from the past year. (Ollstein and Messerly, 6/22)
The 19th: Even In States Where It Is Legal, Abortion Isn’t As Accessible As It Seems
The landscape of legal abortion has shifted sharply in the first year since Roe v. Wade was overturned, with some states banning the procedure almost entirely and others passing new, stricter limits. ... But in many states without near-total bans, abortion is far less available than the laws may suggest. The 19th examined how accessible abortion really is across the country, looking at how far into pregnancy clinics provide care and how the available methods of abortion can vary by state. The data used was provided by INeedAnA.com, an advocacy group that works to provide the most up-to-date information about abortion options in and around the United States. (Luthra and Mithani, 6/22)
AP: Where Abortion Laws Stand In Every State A Year After The Supreme Court Overturned Roe
A state-by-state breakdown of where things stand. (6/23)
The Wall Street Journal: What A Year In Post-Roe America Reveals About Abortion
In the first nine months post-Dobbs, there were some 26,000 fewer abortions in the U.S. within the formal medical system, a decrease of about 3%, according to data from WeCount, an abortion-data project sponsored by the Society of Family Planning, which supports abortion rights. That data doesn’t account for an increase in people ordering abortion pills from overseas, a legal gray area. (Kusisto, 6/23)
How things have changed in Mississippi, Texas, Missouri, Illinois, and Florida —
ABC News: One Year Post-Roe, Crisis Pregnancy Centers Expand Footprint In Mississippi
For the past year, Michelle Colon, a reproductive health advocate in Jackson, Mississippi, has not been able to bring herself to drive past the Pink House. The state's lone abortion clinic operated by Jackson Women’s Health Organization had been forced to close its doors last July, just days after losing its legal battle before the Supreme Court and the state’s abortion ban took effect. Now, the building is painted white, the site of an upscale consignment shop – as much a symbol of victory for anti-abortion groups as the Pink House was once a symbol of defiance. (Flaherty and Kindelan, 6/23)
The Texas Tribune: A Year After Roe V. Wade’s Overturn, Texas Sees Post-Abortion Reality
When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, many in Texas, the largest state in the nation to ban nearly all abortions, began to cycle through the stages of grief. There was denial and anger, as thousands poured into the streets, promising to never stop fighting to turn back the clock and restore abortion access. There was bargaining, in the form of a last-ditch lawsuit to keep clinics open a few weeks longer, and depression, when it failed to change the new legal norm. Now, a year after the Dobbs v. Jackson decision, an uneasy acceptance has settled over Texas, as even the most ardent abortion advocates acknowledge these new laws aren’t changing anytime soon. (Klibanoff, 6/23)
KSDK.com: Tale Of Two States: A Year After Roe V. Wade Overturned In Missouri And Illinois
This weekend marks one year since the United States Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe v. Wade. Following the decision, Missouri was the first state to ban abortions, while abortion services in Illinois are still legal and available. Coming in droves, clients make their way to Planned Parenthood in Fairview Heights, Illinois. (Coronel, 6/22)
Politico: Abortion In Florida Remains In Limbo Until Conservative State High Court Ruling
It’s been a year since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, but Florida’s abortion bans remain in limbo while the state’s highest court weighs what to do. The conservative-leaning Florida Supreme Court, completely overhauled by Gov. Ron DeSantis in the past four years, is poised to decide whether abortions are banned anywhere from six weeks to 24 weeks of pregnancy in the country’s third most populous state, which remains a destination for people seeking the procedure in the South. (Fineout, 6/22)
Also —
CNN: Abortion Is Ancient History: Long Before Roe, Women Terminated Pregnancies
Abortion today, at least in the United States, is a political, legal and moral powder keg. But for long stretches of history, terminating an unwanted pregnancy, especially in the early stages, was a relatively uncontroversial fact of life, historians say. Egyptian papyrus, Greek plays, Roman coins, the medieval biographies of saints, medical and midwifery manuals, and Victorian newspaper and pamphlets reveal that abortion was more common in premodern times than people might think. This long view of abortion matters, according to Mary Fissell, a professor of the history of medicine at Johns Hopkins University. That’s because assumptions about how abortion was viewed in the past color present-day arguments about abortion rights. (Hunt, 6/23)
Read the full Supreme Court ruling: Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization
