U.S. activists are expressing concern over the barriers faced by people considering traveling to Canada for an abortion following last week’s decision to cancel Roe v.
A handful of states, including Texas, Missouri and Utah, have already banned abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
“I think women will eventually resort to self-abortion,” said Renee Chelian, an abortion provider and founder of Northland Family Planning Centers, which has three facilities in Michigan that offer abortion services.
“The reason half of our patients choose abortion is to take care of the children they already have,” Chelian said. “I can’t believe the government has turned its back on us.”
Also called self-managed abortion, a self-abortion is one that occurs without medical supervision or intervention. According to the World Health Organization, people who do not have access to abortion may resort to unsafe ways to end a pregnancy.
MIRAR | Renee Chelian talks about the problems of Americans considering Canada for an abortion:
This abortion provider says that “half of the United States is on its way to becoming an abortion desert.”
Renee Chelian is an abortion provider in the United States and founder of Northland Family Planning Centers.
Chelian said half of the United States is on its way to becoming an abortion desert because of last week’s decision.
“I don’t know how half the U.S. will take over the entire country,” he said, highlighting the potential impact on Canadian abortion providers.
Abortions are currently banned in six states. A handful more are pending a ban on abortion or are surrounded by uncertainty due to “activating laws”.
An active law refers to a state ban on abortions that had been passed before Roe v. Wade was overturned, but that could not be implemented at that time. Now, with Roe v. Wade out of the way, these laws can finally be activated and enforced state by state.
Some states are considering banning abortion with one exception for rape or incest. Other states, such as Missouri, make exceptions for “medical emergencies.”
“If they can handle American patients and patients can reach out to them, I am grateful to them for their compassion, their understanding, and their willingness to help,” Chelian said. “But someone from Detroit won’t go to Vancouver … I don’t think hospital systems where abortions are done in Canada can cope with the increase.”
Last week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the Supreme Court’s decision as a “horrible” novelty that threatens women’s rights.
I have grandchildren. I’m fighting in this fight not just for them … but for everyone who loves someone else who might need an abortion.- Renee Chilean, founder of Northland Family Planning Centers in the US
But Danielle Atkinson, founding director of the Mothering Justice group, a popular U.S.-based policy advocacy organization, said the sentiment is not enough.
“We need the prime minister to make more than one statement … We need the prime minister to really make sure that people can enter the country safely and easily.”
He said accessing abortion services outside the United States is not easy for most people.
“We could not necessarily go to a hospital [in Canada] and abort. The city closest to us, Windsor, has no place, no clinic to access. “
Chelian said he has been trying to bridge the gap.
“I talked to our doctors and we’ve got a meeting this morning to come up with a short-term plan and a long-term plan to be able to test and accommodate Ohio patients. But we also know Indiana will go. I don’t. I don’t know. where Kentucky patients will go. We haven’t had a chance to think about it. “
It is causing a sense of hopelessness for some.
“I heard a woman on the news say,‘ My country doesn’t love me, ’and it seemed so true to me,” Chelian said, her voice trembling. “I have granddaughters. I’m fighting in this fight not just for them … but for everyone who loves someone else who might need an abortion … I hate to think I’ll die and the United States won’t abort yet. Services to every state.” .
Windsor Regional Hospital declined to comment when asked about Chelian’s concerns.
On Wednesday, CBC News contacted the Ontario Ministry of Health to find out what the provincial government is preparing, if any, in light of the Supreme Court decision last Friday.
The ministry responded with a brief statement indicating that it had no information to share.