A coalition of advocates in four states have come together Monday to sue government officials in Alabama, Iowa, Ohio, and Oklahoma over orders to temporarily ban abortion procedures during the coronavirus outbreak. Officials from the four states are claiming that abortions fall under the federal category of nonessential surgeries that should be put off due to the need to preserve medical supplies during the pandemic. Both Alabama and Ohio have even threatened doctors who perform such procedures with legal action and penalties, The Hill reported. Advocates—including those from Planned Parenthood, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and the Center for Reproductive Rights—are urging courts to block state legislators from including abortion in regulations to restrict nonessential surgeries.
The orders follow federal guidelines issued March 18 to cancel all “non-essential surgeries and procedures.” The guidelines were announced after concerns that medical equipment and supplies in the U.S. became limited when the need to treat COVID-19 patients surfaced. In a briefing, the administration asked “every American and every American hospital and healthcare facility to postpone any elective medical procedures.” While the guidelines did not mention abortions, state officials are abusing their authority in office to advance their own political agenda to limit access to abortions. The states bringing abortion into question are the same states that have previously advocated against reproductive justice rights, including Texas. Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights also filed a lawsuit against Texas last week for temporarily halting all abortion services. Those in violation of the state's order can face "penalties of up to $1,000 or 180 days of jail time,” CBS News reported.
Advocates are arguing that state leadership is using this sensitive time to single out abortion when instead they should be working to protect the health of families and communities. “Abortion is an essential, time-sensitive, and constitutionally protected medical procedure,” Rita Bettis Austen, legal director of ACLU Iowa, said. “This move follows the state's numerous prior efforts to ban abortion in Iowa and make abortion more difficult and costly to obtain, all of which, like this decision, have been completely unjustified medically and have been blocked by the courts as unconstitutional. This is the worst time for it to try again.”
The federal order state legislatures are referencing outlines several criteria for nonessential medical services, including procedures that can be delayed without risking a patient's life or health, or causing a condition to worsen. Medical and health experts, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, agree with advocates that abortion is an essential, time-sensitive procedure that cannot be delayed.
According to a press release issued by the ACLU, medical experts found that delaying abortions could “profoundly impact a person’s life, health, and well-being.” In addition, delays to medical care can make it more difficult, or even impossible, for safe and legal abortions to occur. While lawmakers are using the excuse that abortions are not essential or time-sensitive to target the procedure, abortion advocates are right to argue that while the abortions can be scheduled in advance, they are both time-sensitive and essential.
“Abortion is an essential, time-sensitive medical procedure, as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Board of Obstetrics & Gynecology have recognized,” Iowa Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Erin Davison-Rippey said in a statement. “We are in a critical moment for our state when we must come together to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, not politicize health care services that are constitutionally protected.”
While other states including Virginia, New Jersey, Washington, and New York are abiding by federal guidelines on postponing nonessential surgeries, the states have acknowledged that abortions are essential procedures that will continue during the pandemic, The Hill reported.
Limited access to abortions can cause those seeking them to take drastic measures including traveling at a time when social distancing is discouraged, or proceeding with unsafe methods of abortion. Reproductive rights are fundamental human rights every person should be entitled to. Policies such as the Global Gag Rule and others restricting abortion access only increase risks to women’s health and lives. Studies have even found that legally restricting abortions increases the number of unsafe abortions that occur in addition to the number of maternal deaths. Policies to stop or limit abortion do not eliminate the need for safe abortions and reproductive health—they only restrict one’s ability to make their own choices.