Statement on the Anniversary of the SCOTUS Dobbs Decision
It’s been one year since the United States Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, the federal right to abortion, and left a patchwork of abortion access across the US. This devastating decision has had detrimental effects on pregnant people across the country, as they experience worse pregnancy complications and increased delays in receiving care as many states have near or total abortion bans.
When Roe v. Wade was overturned, anti-abortion actors celebrated but they did not plan to stop there, and they haven’t. Anti-abortion politicians and activists have continued to attack abortion rights and access to sexual and reproductive health care, despite the will of the people.
For the past year, our staff has been on the frontlines dealing with the aftermath of Florida’s 15-week abortion ban that has put the lives and health of Floridians and people of the South at risk. A Woman’s Choice of Jacksonville is one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging Florida’s 15-week abortion ban, the decision is pending. If the FL Supreme Court rules to eliminate Florida’s right to privacy, we would have 30 days after that ruling to enforce the 6-week ban. This could be months from today.
In North Carolina, an extreme and sweeping anti-abortion bill, SB 20, was rammed through the legislative process with no public input. Democratic Governor Cooper vetoed the bill, but Republican lawmakers voted to override the Governor's veto of the monster bill banning abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy and imposing significant barriers, such as cutting access to medication abortion by a week and forcing patients to have two in-person visits to the clinic, one to receive a state-mandated script and paperwork and then their actual abortion care 72hrs later. This law makes it difficult for healthcare providers, like us, to offer this care to our patients and creates unnecessary hurdles and barriers for pregnant people to access needed abortions.
These abortion bans have nothing to do with protecting the health and safety of North Carolinians, Floridians, or people of the South.
At A Woman’s Choice clinics, we believe every person deserves a chance at a full, healthy life which can only happen if we have access to full reproductive health services including choosing the method of abortion, miscarriage management, or pregnancy care that works best for their circumstances. We’ve seen firsthand the consequences of abortion bans across the country where people are being forced to travel long distances for time-sensitive, essential health care and being denied care including for miscarriage management, ectopic pregnancies, and other high-risk conditions.
“A year ago, we vowed that A Woman’s Choice clinics would not back down and would continue to provide the best abortion care, and that’s what we’ve done—we’ve served as a crucial access point for abortion care in the South. While our clinics are about to experience more change and uncertainty, we remain committed to that vow and abortion justice for all,” says Kelly Flynn, President/CEO of A Woman’s Choice clinics.
A Woman’s Choice of Jacksonville will continue to challenge these bans in the courts and as a member of the Floridians Protecting Freedom coalition, is working hard to get petitions signed to put abortion on the ballot in 2024. Our clinics in NC will face these new changes to the law head-on and will organize with our communities to rid the politicians that supported the 12-week ban.
Our staff has continued to fight by showing up to work every day. On this anniversary, we ask that you remain vigilant in this fight for abortion access by:
Getting care at one of our clinics. You can call our Hotline to schedule an appointment at 800-298-8874 or request an appointment online at https://www.awomanschoiceinc.com/appointment
Donate to our fund. A Woman's Choice accepts donations for security, staffing assistance, and patient care, those donations are not tax-deductible.
Sign a petition to put abortion on the ballot in FL. If you’re a registered Florida voter, it takes 2 minutes to print, complete the form in blue or black ink, and mail it or drop it off at a petition hub.
Commit to sharing your story. Abortions are common and we only get rid of stigma and shame if we have conversations that normalize our lived experiences.