Defying the Law: How Doctors Are Risking Their Careers to Provide Abortion Care
Although many states across the U.S have become more and more strict regarding abortion laws, some doctors have risked both their safety and careers to perform emergency abortions for those in need. However, these doctors’ acts do come with a price if convicted— oftentimes resulting in fines or even jail time.
In Ohio, Doctor Caitlin Bernard was fined $3,000 by the Indiana Medical Licensing Board for performing an abortion on a 10-year-old rape victim, who attempted to travel from Ohio to Indiana to have an emergency procedure. Attorney General Todd Rokita accused Bernard of “failing to report child abuse” and therefore violated patient privacy by reporting the case to a news station.
The case itself was highly publicized in 2023, and sparked conversations regarding how strict abortion laws have become since the overturning of Roe vs. Wade in June of 2022. Since then, numerous doctors from all areas of the U.S have been fined or punished for providing reproductive health care for women.
A recent case follows New York doctor Maggie Carpenter working with the Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine of New York. This coalition aims to send abortion pills to patients in need from areas such as Texas and Louisiana— areas in which abortion laws are incredibly strict and near impossible to work around. This coalition specifically focuses on providing sexual health care for those in states that lack proper resources or accessibility for those trying to receive any forms of sexual health care.
The state of Louisiana charged Dr. Carpenter for allegedly providing abortion pills to a pregnant minor. Although Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry requested to then extradite Carpenter, New York Governor Kathy Hochul rejected the request, stating that she would sign this order “Not now, not ever”.
The fight for reproductive rights is still alive and burning in the United States, and it is difficult to say what direction these laws will follow in the near future.
