Planned Parenthood of Michigan Reflects on Two Years Since Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Overturned the Federal Right to an Abortion
For Immediate Release: June 21, 2024
Despite massive progress in Michigan, the federal courts, Congress, and a potential Trump presidency would destroy reproductive freedoms of Michiganders
LANSING, Mich. — Two years have passed since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, overturning nearly 50 years of federal protections for abortion access under Roe. v. Wade. Since June 24, 2022, nearly two dozen states have severely restricted or outright banned abortion, forcing more than 171,000 patients to travel out-of-state for abortion care in 2023 or remain pregnant against their will, even to the detriment of their own health.
Statement from Paula Thornton Greear, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Michigan:
“When the news broke that Roe had been overturned, Michiganders sprung into action and passed Proposal 3 with overwhelming support, but the battle for reproductive autonomy didn’t end there. Michiganders need to know that despite all our progress, our rights are still in jeopardy. We are at a pivotal moment in our nation’s history. If anti-freedom politicians get the opportunity to impose national restrictions to abortion access, birth control, and IVF, they will take away the freedoms that Michiganders fought so hard to protect.”
Since the Dobbs decision, the number of patients seeking care in Michigan from out of state has tripled. Michigan abortion providers like Planned Parenthood have been able to provide uninterrupted abortion services thanks to a court injunction on Michigan’s 1931 abortion ban and its subsequent removal by the legislature. Michiganders also overwhelmingly approved the 2022 Reproductive Freedom For All ballot initiative (Proposal 3) that enshrined reproductive freedom into the state constitution. And pro-reproductive freedom majorities in the Michigan House and Senate passed the 2023 Reproductive Health Act, which removed several barriers to abortion access.
Yet barriers remain on Michigan’s law books that impede patients’ ability to access abortion care. Some of these barriers were repealed by the 2023 Reproductive Health Act. Yet the barriers that remain are those that impact patients the most: the 24-hour mandatory delay, biased counseling requirement, and a ban on certain types of clinicians from providing abortions. A pending lawsuit that the Center for Reproductive Rights filed in February on behalf of Northland Family Planning Centers and Medical Students for Choice targets these now unconstitutional restrictions. The outcome could come down to the justices on the Michigan Supreme Court. State law also still bans the use of Medicaid benefits to cover the cost of abortion services, leaving our most vulnerable Michiganders without meaningful access.
Statement from Dr. Sarah Wallett, Chief Medical Operating Officer for Planned Parenthood of Michigan:
“Michiganders have worked tirelessly to protect and expand reproductive freedoms these past two years, and it has made a real difference in the lives of my patients. Yet despite all of our progress, every day I am forced by state law to turn patients away if they forget to print and bring a timestamped form to their abortion appointments. I still have to read to my patients biased, one-size-fits-all, state-mandated information from the state that’s designed to dissuade them from having an abortion. I am hopeful that we can continue to remove these and other barriers to abortion access in Michigan.
“People have developed a false sense of security because abortion is legal in Michigan, but we’re not safe. Since the Dobbs ruling, the number of out-of-state patients we’ve cared for has tripled, causing delays in care for Michiganders. These unsustainable conditions will only worsen if we don’t take action to ensure everyone can access the care they need in the communities they call home.”
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Planned Parenthood offers affordable reproductive health care for all people through medical services, education and advocacy and is the nation’s leading sexual and reproductive health care advocate and provider. Planned Parenthood of Michigan operates health centers across the state, providing medical services and sexuality education for nearly 60,000 Michiganders each year.