Today, Indiana’s near-total abortion ban goes into effect.
Dr. Katie McHugh, ob/gyn and abortion provider in Indiana and Board Member with Physicians for Reproductive Health responds:
“For the last 12 years, I have had the honor of sitting with patients as they’ve made informed decisions about their bodies, families, and futures and have been able to offer them the compassionate abortion care that they need and deserve. Today, that all changes. Because of our state’s desire to control and coerce the decisions we make about our bodies, I can no longer offer the full spectrum of reproductive health care that I am trained to provide and that is necessary for the health and wellbeing of individuals and families.
I can no longer offer the full spectrum of reproductive health care that I am trained to provide…
“The ‘exceptions’ that this law allows for are not enough and do not consider people’s real circumstances or needs. We must call this law what it is: an all-out abortion ban. As we’ve already seen in other states who banned abortion before and after the Dobbs decision, banning abortion has long term health implications for birthing people. We should be focusing on bettering the health outcomes of pregnant and parenting people, not obsessing over ways to ensure that people will be harmed.
“I am ashamed by the decisions Indiana’s legislature and courts have made. I will keep showing up for my community in every way I can and look forward to a future where abortion access is restored.”