My colleagues and I studied cases, representing the years 2010 through 2015, of patients who got help from one national abortion fund that prioritized serving people who were close to the gestational limit on when they could get an abortion. Francois Picard/AFP via Getty Images High costs While some private health insurance companies cover abortion costs, most insurances, including Medicaid in most states, will not pay for it.Įmployees answer phone calls at the Hope Medical Group for Women in Shreveport, La., which receives many abortion patients from Texas, in April 2022. First-trimester surgical abortions range from $455 to $955. One reason there is a gap between demand and availability is the high cost of an abortion. Each person they helped received an average of $215. But that was only one-third of the almost 230,000 people who requested money. The National Network of Abortion Funds reports that its member organizations helped almost 82,000 people cover abortion expenses during the 2019-2020 fiscal year. This help is needed because an estimated 75% of abortion patients are poor or low-income, and research shows that out-of-pocket abortion expenses can make up about one-third of an average patient’s monthly income.īut even with the new influx of cash, abortion funds’ financial capacities are limited. In response to the Dobbs ruling, abortion funds have been expecting a continued nationwide increase in requests for help. Still unable to meet demandĬalls to abortion funds requesting help with out-of-state travel have skyrocketed in Texas since September 2021, after the state banned abortion beyond six weeks of pregnancy. But the jump in donations may not match people’s rising needs, abortion fund experts say. When the actual ruling came down on June 24, the National Network of Abortion Funds, which reports having over 90 affiliate abortion fund members, received over $3 million from 33,000 new donors.Īn increase in “ rage-giving,” which refers to donations that are sparked by anger, has continued. Wade, donors gave US$1.5 million to abortion funds within a week. Shortly after the draft Supreme Court opinion leaked in May 2022, foreshadowing the overturn of Roe v. This will prompt more people seeking help from abortion funds, which themselves are facing new kinds of legal and financial pressures. As a social work professor who studies access to reproductive health care, I think it’s important to understand that state abortion bans and restrictions will increase people’s need to travel out of state to get an abortion.
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