© 2024 KRCU Public Radio
90.9 Cape Girardeau | 88.9-HD Ste. Genevieve | 88.7 Poplar Bluff
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
The latest news from every corner of the state, including policy emerging from Missouri's capitol.

As MO's Abortion Ban Goes Into Effect, Advocates Turn to IL

Roe v. Wade Demonstrators in the crowd
Adam Fagan/Flickr
/
Adam Fagan/Flickr
Twenty-six states are poised to ban abortion following the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade.

When Friday's Supreme Court decision came down overturning Roe v. Wade, Missouri's attorney general took action to put the state's trigger law into effect.

Missouri is one of more than a dozen states where abortion is no longer legal, and providers in southern Illinois are working to build capacity to support patients who'll need access to care away from home, and calling for a federal public health emergency.

Missouri's last abortion clinic is Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, which also has clinics in Illinois.

Yamelsie Rodriguez, president and CEO of the clinic, said while they had to cease abortions in Missouri, demand in Illinois is skyrocketing.

"We are fielding questions and calls from our network of providers across the country asking, are you ready? Can you help us fit additional patients that were on their schedules in their home states to get abortion care and after the decision?" Rodriguez reported. "That's no longer an option for them. "

Missouri has for years been one of the most restrictive places to access an abortion, with just one remaining clinic in the entire state. Many people seeking care already travel to Illinois or to Kansas, where abortion is legal up to 20 weeks. A court decision in Kansas in 2019 protected abortion rights there, but lawmakers have introduced a constitutional amendment to be voted on in November which would pave the way for passing and enforcing abortion bans in the future.

Mallory Schwartz, executive director of Pro-Choice Missouri, pointed to legislation filed in St. Louis Friday to create a "Reproductive Equity Fund" for supporting pregnancy outcomes, including abortion.

"The innovation that St. Louis is showing with this legislation that arose directly out of St. Louis in stated needs, shows the strength of our grassroots movement," Schwartz asserted. "And also shows the critical importance of looking to state and local leadership as we prepare for and respond to this federal loss of abortion."

Rodriguez pointed out pregnancy can have dangerous health outcomes, disproportionately for BIPOC people, those with low incomes and those who are already parents. She said with 26 states poised to put bans in place, it is important for the federal government to take action, as Illinois and other states guaranteeing abortion access brace for the ruling's effects.

"Our priority right now is going to be to ensure that patients have the information they need to navigate this new reality, the education they need to prevent unintended pregnancies, and the resources to access abortion if and when they need it," Rodriguez outlined.

Missouri News Service is a partner with KRCU Public Radio.

Originally from just outside Boston, Lily Bohlke is formerly from 2020Talks, a show tracking politics and elections, that started prior to the 2020 Iowa caucuses at KHOI in Ames. She's also a past intern for the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism.