A man analyzes abortion data. Three women have words.

A state’s complete ban on a woman’s ability to choose is reframed as a ‘hassle’ that, if one does not have the means to circumvent, now results in one’s ‘deciding’ to give birth.

Scrutinizing some of the words used to characterize women’s so-called choices Re “In post-Dobbs America, abortion is up” (Opinion, Dec. 6): To understand why the number of abortions increased in states bordering those where abortions are banned, Jeff Jacoby inferred that “pregnant women are bypassing those bans by simply [the italics in this paragraph are mine] going to a neighboring state for an abortion.” Yet to understand why births are up a bit in states with abortion bans, he assumes that “the hassle of traveling out-of-state may have been the small nudge [some women] needed to reconsider their decision,” and that in these states, “a small fraction [of women] have decided instead to forgo abortion and carry their babies to term.”

In this way, a state’s complete ban on a woman’s ability to choose is reframed as a “hassle” that, if one does not have the means to circumvent, now results in one’s “deciding” to give birth. Does Jacoby believe that women really still do have a viable choice, no matter that they might live in a state in which the nearest abortion clinic is hundreds of miles away? This mischaracterizes what overturning Roe v. Wade means to countless women.

Rather than helping us understand these research results, Jacoby muddies the waters. My sincere request is that he do some deeper research into the lives of women residing in states with complete bans on abortion and then tell us what their lives are really like, instead of telling us what he imagines they are like.

SANDY DIXON Melrose