US lawmakers ‘using outbreak as excuse to ban abortions’

ANTI-ABORTION politicians across the US are using the coronavirus outbreak as an excuse to ban the procedure, women’s rights activists have claimed.

Several US states have moved to include abortion procedures in bans on nonessential medical procedures during the pandemic, forcing a number of clinics to turn women away from their appointments.

More than half the US population is currently cov- ered by stay-at-home orders, with more than 123,700 cases now reported across the country.

But, as the country tries to slow the virus’s path, women’s health activists say some state officials are using the situation to enforce their own anti-abortion agenda. In Texas, Greg Abbott, the Republican governor, introduced a statewide ban on “any type of abortion” during the outbreak unless a woman’s life or health were at risk.

Abortion providers that fail to comply could face fines of up to $1,000 (£800) or 180 days in jail.

Seven abortion clinics in Texas were forced to cancel procedures for “hundreds of patients” as a result of the ban, according to Planned Parenthood, a non-profit which provides reproductive healthcare.

The organisation has joined with the Centre for Reproductive Rights and the Lawyering Project to sue Mr Abbott and his aides, accusing them of a “exploit[ing] a public health crisis to advance an extreme, anti-abortion agenda”.

The issue has also flared in Ohio where David Yost, the attorney general, ordered two abortion clinics to cease surgical procedures immediately in order to preserve personal protective equipment supplies.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has spoken out against the orders, warning that a delay of even a few days for abortion procedures could have a major impact on women’s “life, health and well-being”.