In the United States alone, one in four women will have had an abortion before they\u2019re 45 years old. But ever since June 2022, when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a landmark case which gave women a constitutional right to an abortion, many of those women must travel far to get one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, Dr. Adam Jacobs provides women reproductive healthcare and contraception. As medical director of the Division of Complex Family Planning, he counsels women on the alternatives they have when it comes to reproductive matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI also see patients presenting for medical and surgical abortion,\u201d Jacobs said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The overturning of Roe v. Wade has greatly impacted Jacobs\u2019 job. He has seen more patients seeking family planning abortion services who come from states where abortion is now illegal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jacobs now helps women from all over the country. \u201cTexas, Ohio, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and South Carolina,\u201d Jacobs said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abortion has been hotly debated in the United States for the last 100 years, dividing the nation in two. Since then, more than 10 states have banned abortions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The United States had previously opened the doors to abortion, at least since 1973, when the U.S. Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade. In other places around the world prohibitions are being reversed. Before 2018 for example, Ireland was one of the most restricted countries against abortion on account of a 1983 law that banned it. A historically Catholic country, women have been able to get abortions in Ireland in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy since 2018. Argentina, Mexico and Columbia have also eased restrictions on abortions within the last three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With abortion bans being passed in so many states across the United States, doctors like Jacobs find it isn\u2019t enough to provide the abortions in states where it is legal. He also helps the women travel to New York, through an organization that does that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jacobs called abortion an \u201cessential healthcare\u201d and said that overturning Roe v. Wade has \u201ctaken away a patient\u2019s ability to make their own healthcare decisions and control over their own body.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While conducting research, we decided to input an address and zip code into a search engine to find abortion providers near us. We found at least one clinic nearby and another four miles away. All are easy to access and get to within an hour. One can book an appointment privately and easily by telephone, services are open 24\/7 and no one is denied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In New York City, abortions can be covered by insurance. If someone doesn\u2019t have it, they can call a clinic and be able to get financial assistance. Abortions can also be paid for by NYC Care<\/a>, a healthcare program that promises a low- to zero-cost healthcare service to New Yorkers who don\u2019t have health insurance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If one can\u2019t come into the city itself to receive an abortion, it is as easy outside the city as well. There are dozens of clinics in the New York metropolitan area. In Westchester County, just north of New York City, there are four abortion clinics. There are at least 13 clinics on Long Island, to the east of the city, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Because of the restrictions in other states, women from all over the country now arrive to get abortions. And those who don\u2019t have access to health insurance still have many alternatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many organizations within New York, such as Brigid Alliance,\u2002<\/a>provide women seeking abortions with transportation, meals, childcare, support and a place to live. As of September 2022, according to cable news channel NY 1, an abortion clinic in Queens had seen a rise of at least a 300%\u2002<\/a>of patients from Texas, one of the most restricted states in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n