Mississippi's abortion laws are drawing national attention, and abortion rights advocates are discussing how these laws affect public health and access to reproductive care. Shannon Brewer, Director of the Jackson Women's Health Organization, spoke about operating the state's only abortion clinic during a virtual press conference hosted by Rewire News Group. She says protestors will often harass patients coming into the clinic and people at other nearby businesses.
"As soon as we get through one hurdle another one pops up," says Brewer. "The antis are getting worse, police are doing nothing about it. On top of that we have the supreme court thing that just came up. So now everybody's calling. We get constant calls everyday. It's our regular everyday issues that's going on, with this on top of it.
Advocates say laws that restrict abortions are also hurting public health. Dr. Lean Torres is Medical Director at West Alabama's Women's Center, and advocates for abortion rights in the South. She says studies have found that when access to abortions and other reproductive health resources are limited, pregnancy-related deaths rise.
"When you have a percentage of people who die in pregnancy, and increase the number of people who are pregnant, you have more people dying in pregnancy," says Dr. Torres. "This is not about abortion. This is about public health, public safety, and what our government is doing to erode public health, public safety."
Experts say it is unclear when the supreme court will issue a ruling on the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization case.
