Providing Essential Care While Rights Are On the Line

All healthcare decisions are deeply personal and belong between a patient and their healthcare provider. Patients come to us, each with their own unique circumstances, looking for medical guidance rooted in compassionate science. There is an intimacy and trust in the relationships and conversations we have with patients. Yet, as an abortion provider and Chief Medical Officer at Planned Parenthood North Central States, I have watched as elected officials have politicized reproductive health care, erecting barriers to safe and legal abortion care. These politicians lack any medical expertise or understanding of the situations facing each patient who enters our exam rooms. In June, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned almost 50 years of federal abortion protections, leaving it up to states to determine the future of abortion access. Following the ruling, abortion access in some of Minnesota’s neighboring states immediately went dark. Politicians in other states, like Iowa and Nebraska, have made it clear they intend to outlaw safe and legal abortion. But in Minnesota the court doubled down on its protection of abortion rights. The court ruled in July most medically unnecessary abortion restrictions unconstitutional. This ruling allows more medical professionals to provide abortion care, while eliminating medically unnecessary mandated wait times and state-required medical scripts riddled with misinformation. These decisions ensure Minnesotans and others in states where abortion is no longer legal and who choose to come to Minnesota have access to safe and legal abortion care. With each court ruling and politically charged change to abortion access, our health center staff react, adapt, and continue to dig into the work of providing the critical reproductive health care that our patients need. As a five-state affiliate covering Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota and North Dakota, we have been forced to quickly find ways to implement medically unnecessary waiting periods and ensure patients in South Dakota, where abortion is now illegal, receive the reproductive health care they need. The work is hard. And we are tired. But we remain driven by the shared commitment of healthcare providers across the state to provide essential care to those who need it. We are painfully aware of the impact to our patients with each legal change. We have been flooded with calls and questions from confused patients who are unsure if they can legally access abortion care. They are navigating an ever-changing landscape when all they want is accurate, comprehensive reproductive health care. We are seeing an influx of patients coming to Minnesota for care, because they live in a state where abortion is banned. They travel from as far as Texas and Louisiana, so they can have the right to choose what’s best for their unique situation and have control over their future. We even now have staff dedicated to helping patients navigate through the many obstacles they face to getting care. It shouldn’t be this hard to get an abortion. We know every ban and restriction has the greatest impact on those who cannot afford to travel to access safe and legal abortion. Individuals with low incomes, people of color and young people are faced with forced pregnancies or other difficult decisions, because they cannot access the care they need. State leadership matters. The values and policy priorities of our state legislators and governor directly impact the daily experience of our health center staff and the ability of our patients to get the care they need. We need elected leaders who trust Minnesotans to make the best decisions about their own bodies and will fight to protect these personal decisions.

Last December, as the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments about the fundamental rights of Americans, Minnesota medical organizations representing thousands of medical providers and over 100 individual providers signed onto an open letter in support of abortion access. It was an inspiring call to arms that reminded me of the power of our community. There are many more ways we can speak out and show up: write an op-ed for the local newspaper on how this election will impact your work, volunteer to speak at upcoming press conferences and legislative hearings, and speak out against hospital policies that hinder doctors from doing what’s in the best interest of their patients. And above all else, we need more healthcare systems and staff offering abortion. As we brace for more and more patients to come to Minnesota from other states, we need all hands-on deck. We need you. As medical providers, we’re uniquely positioned to demonstrate the impact legislation and elections have on health care. We must do everything in our power to secure our ability to provide patient care without political interference. I hope you take action today, for our patients and for our future patients.

Sarah Traxler, MD, MSPH is Chief Medical Officer of Planned Parenthood North Central States, overseeing the provision of sexual and reproductive health care for Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. She is a board certified OB/GYN and completed her fellowship in complex family planning. She provides the full range of sexual and reproductive health care, including abortion. Dr. Traxler is the immediate past president of Twin Cities Medical Society. She can be reached at: straxler@ppncs.org, or 651-696-5534.

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