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Title: REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS & HEALTH Access to Abortion During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Recession
Citation Type: Miscellaneous
Publication Year: 2021
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Abstract: Abortion is time-sensitive, essential health care1 that one in four women will need in her lifetime.2 The right to abortion is also enshrined in the U.S. Constitution as a fundamental right that helps ensure equal participation in the social and economic life of the country.3 Without meaningful access to abortion, many women—especially women of color and those struggling to make ends meet—are left without the care they need, threatening their health, lives, and futures.4 Protecting the right to abortion and expanding access to abortion care is therefore critical – particularly during times of crisis and uncertainty. Even before the pandemic, many people already faced tremendous barriers to abortion. In 2019 alone, 58 new abortion restrictions were enacted in 17 states.5 These restrictions are profoundly unequal in effect, disproportionately impacting people who have low incomes, people of color,6 young people,7 LGBTQ people,8 and people living in rural areas.9 But COVID-19 has exacerbated existing inequities in and barriers to abortion access, and some politicians have attempted to exploit the pandemic to close abortion clinics and prevent pregnant people from making decisions about their bodies and futures. Any state or federal measures to alleviate the financial, medical, and social impacts of the pandemic must include increased access to abortion care. This issue brief provides an overview of ways that COVID-19 and the accompanying economic instability impact abortion care access. This brief also offers solutions for state and federal policymakers to protect and expand access to abortion care during the pandemic and recession.
Url: https://nwlc.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/3.21-Brief-.pdf
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Publisher: NATIONAL WOMEN'S LAW CENTER
Data Collections: IPUMS USA
Topics: Gender, Reproductive and Sexual Health
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