Introduction
The United States was one of the first countries to provide for the right to abortion. This followed a case presented by Jane Roe, where she sued Texas for denying her the right to end her pregnancy. The Supreme Court ruled in her favor with a vote of 7-2 in 1973, stating that the right to privacy extends to a woman’s decision on whether to keep or terminate her pregnancy.
However, on June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned the Roe v Wade ruling, bringing to an end the constitutional right of a woman to terminate a pregnancy before fetal viability. The court’s decision contrasts sharply with worldwide trends extending abortion rights. The decision would worsen existing intolerable health and economic inequality and leave half of Americans without full access to their human rights to health and bodily integrity. Therefore, this paper examines the consequences of the ban on abortion on women physically and psychologically.
The research questions are divided into levels 1 and 2 to address the inquiry’s scientific, mathematical, or analytical perspectives. From the scientific perspective of the study, the research questions are;
- What are the pathological or epidemiological issues involved in prohibiting fetal termination?
- How do epidemiological issues affect the health of pregnant women?
- What are the economic issues involved in the abortion ban?
- How do economic issues affect the lives of pregnant women and their families?
Pathological and Epidemiological Issues
The epidemiological issues that necessitate abortion can be grouped into three categories: uterine or cervical anomalies, maternal or paternal anomalies, poorly controlled chronic disorders, and fetal incompatibility. Firstly, uterine or cervical anomalies include polyps, myomas, adhesions, and cervical insufficiency. Secondly, fetal incompatibility is one of the main reasons for pregnancy termination. Some leading reasons for incompatibility with life include nervous system malformations, chromosomal abnormalities, hydrops fetalis, and musculoskeletal and congenital anomalies. In these cases, abortion helps solve the challenges of providing care to such babies and helps them avoid pain.
Thirdly, the abortion can be prompted by the mother’s health condition, which may make her unfit to carry the pregnancy; such terminations are called therapeutic abortion. Disi et al. (2022) say such conditions may include neoplasms, genitourinary illnesses, and circulatory system diseases. Lastly, poorly managed chronic disorders can necessitate abortion to save the mother’s life. Such disorders include hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and chronic kidney disease.
Effects of Epidemiological Issues Affect the Health of Pregnant Women
Most of these epidemiological problems may result in a miscarriage of the fetus. According to Paltrow et al. (2022, p.6), miscarriages happen in more than 26% of total pregnancies, while stillbirth rates are 0.6%. With the abortion ban, women who intentionally decide to abort for any reason, including the epidemiological issues mentioned above, can be jailed. It has happened in countries such as El Salvador and Mexico (Paltrow et al., 2022).
The United States has not been an exception, even when Roe was still on the books. Some notable cases where women have been arrested, taken to court, and, in some cases, put behind bars include Adora Perez, who was found guilty of manslaughter and given an 11-year sentence for experiencing a stillbirth while taking methamphetamine without any supporting evidence (Paltrow et al., 2022). The other one is Britteny Poolaw from Oklahoma, who was given a 4.5-year sentence after being charged with manslaughter for having had a miscarriage between weeks 15 and 17 of her pregnancy (Paltrow et al., 2022). More of these cases are expected with the ban on abortion rights.
Furthermore, the ban will see many women with various epidemiological issues being denied medication. Access to drugs such as methotrexate and misoprostol may be limited due to the prohibition of abortion rights. Low-dose methotrexate efficiently cures rheumatoid and inflammatory arthritis (Bermas, 2022). It can also treat adult and child cancers, such as leukemia and breast cancer. On the other hand, misoprostol has significantly reduced maternal mortality (Howard & Krishna, 2022). These drugs are essential for women suffering from certain chronic diseases, and denying them is a high-risk factor in their lives.
Economic Issues Involved
The prevalence of abortion varies by population and is more common among low-income families. According to Disi et al. (2022), more than sixty percent of those who have abortions also have additional children, and seventy-five percent of those who have abortions have low incomes or live in poverty. The abortion ban will result in economic issues such as reducing women’s education, participation in the labor force, occupational prestige, and earnings.
When women are not able to decide on keeping their pregnancies, they will be forced to quit work to take care of their young ones. This aspect will reduce the number of females involved in employment activities nationwide. Other economic consequences will include financial stress as a result of childbirth. According to Miller et al. (2020), women denied the opportunity to have an abortion feel more financial pressure in caring for the babies than those with similar socioeconomic characteristics but initially planned to give birth. It results from the fact that the woman was not financially prepared to raise the baby.
Effects of Economic Issues on the Lives of Pregnant Women and Their Families
Consequently, the number of abandoned children will significantly increase. Most abandoned infants come from low-income families with incomes as low as 31% below the federal poverty level (Disi et al., 2022, p.1). These children often lack basic needs. The high rates of abandoned children can potentially increase insecurity in some areas within the United States.
On the other hand, the current state of affairs, characterized by the dearth of pregnancy and parental support in the United States, complicates the problem. Other issues include no paid parental leave, few health insurance options, and no childcare support. They make people with low incomes choose between paying to travel to get an abortion and starting a family, putting many families in an even more precarious situation.
Conclusion
The ban on abortion presents excellent challenges. The overruling of the Roe case has led to minimal room for abortion, with some states altogether banning the act. This research aimed to examine the psychological and physical challenges facing pregnant women due to the change in the law concerning abortion rights.
The paper uses scientific and analytic perspectives to form and answer questions about the topic. The questions are presented in two levels, levels 1 and 2. Level 1 question from the scientific perspective was: What are pathological and epidemiological issues? The epidemiological issues include cervical anomalies, fetal incompatibility, maternal anomalies, and poorly managed chronic diseases.
Level 2 of the question sought to elaborate on how epidemiological issues affected the health of pregnant women. The paper found that the issues were highly likely to result in miscarriages, which may lead to the women’s arrest, prosecution, and conviction. It also found out that the ban might lead to the denial of medication to women.
The level 1 question from the analytical perspective inquired about the economic issues with abortion prohibition. The study found that the issues included reduced women’s education, alow female labor force, and low earnings. Level 2 of the perspective question examined how economic issues affected women’s lives. It was found that they led to financial stress, increased rates of abandoned children, and unsafe abortions.
References
Bermas, B. L. (2022). The unintended consequence of the overturn of Roe v Wade: Restrictions on Methotrexate Use. The Journal of Rheumatology, 49(11), 1284-1285. Web.
Disi, E. S., Okpaise, O. O., Akpanobong, M.-A. U., Eyinfunjowo, S. O., Ukwandu, S. A., & Alabintei, M. O. (2022). Effects and proposed countermeasures of abortion bans and restrictions on people with uteruses and society. Cureus, 14(10), 29906. Web.
Howard, S., & Krishna, G. (2022). How the US scrapping of Roe v Wade threatens the global medical abortion revolution. BMJ, 379. Web.
Miller, S., Wherry, L. R., & Foster, D. G. (2020). The economic consequences of being denied an abortion. National Bureau of Economic Research. Web.
Paltrow, L. M., Harris, L. H., & Marshall, M. F. (2022). Beyond abortion: The consequences of overturning Roe. The American Journal of Bioethics: 22(8), 3–15. Web.