Published 7 Dec 2022 at 12:06 p.mUpdated 7 Dec. 2022 at 12:07 p.m
Twice as many abortion clinics have closed this year compared to last year. Since the justices of the US Supreme Court buried the Roe v Wade ruling in June, which dates back to 1973 and guaranteed the right to abortion, each state is now free to pass its own laws.
In the first eleven months of this year, 42 independent clinics had closed, most in the South and Midwest. A number higher than the 20 closures recorded in 2021, according to a report published by the Abortion Care Network (ACN), an association of abortion service providers. Independent clinics perform 55% of abortions in the United States.
Almost total bans in a dozen states
The Supreme Court’s decision triggered a wave of tighter restrictions on abortion, including near-total bans in a dozen states. While some clinics still operate in these locations, many have closed. Others plan to move. According to ACN, 14 states currently have no abortion clinics.
In the months following the Supreme Court’s decision, the number of legal abortions in the United States fell by 6%, according to the Society of Family Planning. “When we lose clinics, we also lose access to a full range of reproductive health care, such as birth control, PrEP for HIV and the transition journey for transgender people,” lamented ACN Deputy Director Erin Grant.
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