The far-reaching impact of abortion bans: reproductive care and beyond

Abstract

On 24 June 2022, the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a 49-year-old precedent that provided federal constitutional protection for abortions up to the point of foetal viability, returning jurisdiction to the individual states. Restrictions that came into effect automatically in several states, and are anticipated in others, will severely limit access to abortions in approximately half of the US. Even though every state allows for exceptions to the abortion bans, in some instances these exceptions can be used to preserve the health of a pregnant patient, while in other instances, only to preserve their life. The vague and confusing nature of the abortion ban exceptions threatens to compromise the standard of care for patients with pregnancy complications that are distinct from abortions, such as nonviable pregnancies, miscarriages, and ectopic pregnancies. Additionally, we envision challenges for the treatment of women with certain autoimmune conditions, pregnant cancer patients, and patients contemplating preimplantation genetic diagnosis as part of assisted reproductive technologies. The abortion ban exceptions will impact and interfere with the medical care of pregnant and non-pregnant patient populations alike and are poised to create a medical and public health crisis unlike any other one from the recent past.

摘要

2022年6月24日, 美国最高法院推翻了1973年“Roe vs Wade”。“Roe vs Wade”是一个49年前的案例, 这一案例为直至胎儿出生前的堕胎提供了联邦宪法保护。“Roe vs Wade”的推翻使得堕胎不再受宪法保护, 将管辖权归还给各个州。在几个州自动生效的限制措施, 预计在其他州也会生效, 这将严重限制美国大约一半地区的堕胎。尽管每个州都允许堕胎禁令的例外, 但在某些情况下, 这些例外可以用来保护怀孕患者的健康, 而在其他情况下, 只是为了保护他们的生命。堕胎禁令例外情况的含糊和令人困惑的性质可能会危及对患有妊娠并发症的患者的护理标准, 这些并发症与堕胎不同, 如无法存活的怀孕、流产和宫外孕。此外, 我们预计患有某些自身免疫疾病的妇女、怀孕的癌症患者以及考虑将植入前基因诊断作为辅助生殖技术的一部分的患者的治疗将面临挑战。堕胎禁令的例外将影响和干扰怀孕和非怀孕患者的医疗保健, 并可能造成一场与最近发生的任何其他危机都不同的医疗和公共卫生危机。

Keywords:

• reproductive rights
• abortion
• abortion restriction
• public health
• pregnant populations

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).