In spite of recent reporting that directly links Georgia’s abortion restriction with the deaths of two Black women, the state Supreme Court’s decision earlier this month to temporarily reinstate the law while an appeal is in progress did not surprise leaders at the forefront of the state’s reproductive justice movement.
Last month, ProPublica reported on Amber Nicole Thurman and Candi Miller, two Black mothers and Georgia residents who died because they could not access the abortion care they needed.
“The deaths of these Black women are the first documented deaths that were 100% preventable and directly connected to the abortion ban are right here in Georgia,” said Monica Simpson, executive director of SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective.
SisterSong is the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit brought against the state of Georgia over the law, which makes abortion illegal once fetal cardiac activity is detected.
While the court prepares to make its final ruling, Georgia remains one of the most dangerous states in America to give birth, especially for Black women, who are less likely to have access to care during and after their pregnancy. Advocates and medical professionals say the reinstatement of the abortion restriction not only endangers pregnant people, it also puts a strain on the entire reproductive health care system.
“Our opposition has worked really, really hard for decades to push this as a moral issue,” Simpson said. “Abortion — whether it’s a medical procedure or given through medication — is reproductive health care, and I feel like that gets lost so much in what we hear from our opposition.”
Although Georgia’s abortion legislation is often referred to as the six-week ban, fetal cardiac activity can sometimes be detected days before or after the six-week pregnancy mark, said Dr. Megan Cohen, medical director for Planned Parenthood Southeast.
“Just because there are some pulsing cells that are going to potentially become a heart later on doesn’t mean that we know the fetus will be viable, that there won’t be any congenital anomalies or that there won’t be any significant problems with the pregnancy,” she said.
Cohen described the cutoff as arbitrary lawmaking by people who lack medical training.
A University of Georgia poll done a few months after the law went into effect in 2022 showed that 86% of Black voters strongly opposed the legislation.
The legal battle for abortion rights
The law banning abortion once fetal cardiac activity is detected was initially struck down by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney on Sept. 30. His ruling was quickly appealed by Gov. Brian Kemp and Attorney General Chris Carr. On Oct. 7, the state Supreme Court restored the ban while the appeal is being heard and a final ruling is decided.
“Unfortunately, their decision to immediately reinstate the ban pending that appeal indicates that at least now they are inclined to allow the ban to stand in the future as well,” said Cory Isaacson, legal director of the ACLU of Georgia.
As of now, Georgia’s abortion restriction limits the procedure from being performed after about six weeks of pregnancy unless there is a medical emergency in which the life of the mother is threatened. Other exceptions to the law include cases of rape or incest, in which abortions are legally allowed to take place before 20 weeks of pregnancy if the expecting mother has filed a police report. Lastly, an abortion can be performed if a doctor determines the fetus suffers from “congenital or chromosomal anomaly” that makes it unlikely to survive after birth.
The same justices who upheld the ban in 2022 remain on the court and will once again rule on its legality.
What’s at stake?
In Georgia, nearly two-thirds of all abortions are performed on Black women, even though Black men and women combined only represent about one-third of the state’s population, according to a 2019 Kaiser Family Foundation study.
In addition, Georgia is in the midst of a maternal mortality crisis; more than half of its counties don’t have a single OB-GYN. These health care deserts in rural majority-Black counties make the state an especially dangerous place to give birth.
“We have to contextualize that we live in a state that has yet to expand Medicaid,” Simpson said. “So we already have thousands of people who are falling through the cracks just trying to access the basic health care they need for themselves and their families.”
That gap is being filled by reproductive justice organizations like ARC Southeast, which connects Southerners with reproductive care, including abortion assistance. But legislation like Georgia’s abortion restriction means their limited resources need to go even further, according to co-Executive Directors Alexia Rice-Henry and Angel Whaley.
“Folks are having to travel out of state and travel further than ever to get the care they need,” said Rice-Henry.
ARC Southeast offers financial assistance with flights, hotels, meal vouchers, ride-share vouchers, and child care for their patients who have to travel out of state. Even with that assistance, Rice-Henry said this often means lost wages for women who do not have paid time off or sick days.
So far this year, 84% of people who called into ARC Southeast’s hotline traveled out of state to receive care.
“Our belief is that you should be able to get an abortion without any barriers, without any disruptions to your everyday life,” said Whaley. “The same way I got a referral from my dentist to go to a specialist 20 miles away to have my wisdom teeth removed, the same should be true for folks that need an abortion.”
The six-week abortion ban is also creating financial strain for existing independent health clinics that provide a range of health care, including abortions.
“Most of the clinics are not just abortion clinics — they provide yearly check-ups, STI testing, trans-affirming care, birth control, and other reproductive care,” said Rice-Henry.
