The Quickie: The Heavy Cost of Abortion Bans

Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: A new Planned Parenthood video series explains the emotional and financial toll of traveling for reproductive care, abortion rights advocates file lawsuit over Nebraska’s ban on abortion and gender-affirming care, Nevada Gov. approves abortion protection law, and new polling data shows that Americans are increasingly concerned about abortion bans.

THE HEAVY COST OF ABORTION BANS: State bans have blocked abortion for nearly 21 million women, plus trans and nonbinary people, since the Supreme Court's decision to strip our federal abortion rights. These bans have created devastating circumstances for people across the country. 

The financial and emotional toll of traveling out of state to get a legal abortion is different for every patient, and can result in exorbitant expenses including the cost of overnight stays, child care, lost wages, and more. 

This week, The Financial Diet featured a new Planned Parenthood video series that highlights potential patient experiences as they navigate the process of traveling from their state to another for abortion care. These stories reflect the hurdles real-life patients are having to endure to access abortion care.

Watch The Financial Diet video and see the full video series at bansoff.org/travel.

NEW LAWSUIT FILED OVER NEBRASKA ABORTION & GENDER AFFIRMING CARE BANS: On Tuesday, the ACLU of Nebraska filed a lawsuit arguing that LB574, which bans both abortion after 12 weeks of pregnancy and gender affirming health care for youth, violates the state Constitution on single-subject law. 

The ACLU of Nebraska is representing Planned Parenthood of the Heartland and Dr. Sarah Traxler, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood North Central States. In a statement, Ruth Richardson, CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States said: 

“Although both components of LB 574 took away Nebraskans’ freedoms, ultimately we are talking about two entirely unrelated subjects: gender-related care for trans youth and abortion access. We believe the combination of those bans violated the clear text of our state’s constitution. And the end result of senators’ failure to adhere to the single subject requirement was a rushed process that circumvented critical legislative guardrails. The bottom line is that senators do not get to pick and choose which constitutional requirements they will follow when making laws. We look forward to making our case as litigation progresses.”

Read more at WOWT.

NEVADA GOV. APPROVES ABORTION SHIELD LAW: On Tuesday, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo signed a law protecting the state’s abortion providers and patients traveling to Nevada for care. Gov. Lombardo is one of the only Republican governors to sign a law enshrining protections for abortion. 

The measure codifies an executive order issued by former Gov. Steve Sisolak in 2022. Planned Parenthood Votes Nevada executive director Lindsey Harmon applauded the measure when it passed the legislature earlier this month: 

“Nevada has a long history of supporting abortion rights and access, and it is more important than ever that we continue to uphold this legacy in the face of increasing attacks against the right in our neighboring states and even at the federal level. Protections for our abortion providers and the patients who come to our state seeking care are a vitally important step in acknowledging the present national abortion access landscape and Nevada’s role as a safe haven state.”

Read more from the Associated Press. 

NEW POLLING ON ABORTION SHOWS CONCERNS FOR REPUBLICANS IN 2024: New polling published by the Kaiser Family Foundation indicates increasing concern for anti-abortion politicians on the ballot in 2024. In line with polling since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade, the data indicates strong support for abortion rights among the general public, including Independent voters. It also shows increasing awareness around abortion bans and laws and the saliency of abortion rights in elections moving forward. Here are a few toplines from the report: 

People are affected by abortion bans: More than half (55%) of women ages 18 to 49 say they or someone they know has taken at least one of several steps aimed at reducing the likelihood of getting pregnant due to concerns about not being able to access an abortion.

Abortion bans are a public health concern: Two-thirds of the public are either “very concerned” (42%) or “somewhat concerned” (23%) that bans on abortion may lead to unnecessary health problems. This includes eight in ten (82%) Democrats and seven in ten independents and about half (47%) of Republicans who are concerned these bans could lead to unnecessary health problems. 

People trust Democrats more than Republicans on abortion: 

• 4 in ten (42%) of all voters say the Democratic Party best represents their own views on abortion, compared to about one fourth (26%) who say the Republican Party best represents their own views on abortion.  
• Nearly twice as many women (45% to 24%) ages 18 to 49 say the Democratic Party best represents their views on abortion compared to the Republican Party.  
• 4 in ten (36%) Independents say they are best represented by the Democratic Party, and 13% say their views on abortion best align with the Republican Party. 

Read more from the report here.