3 Years After Roe Fell, Being Pregnant in the U.S. Is More Dangerous Than Ever

Formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America

Activism 101 Deep Dives

3 Years After Roe Fell, Being Pregnant in the U.S. Is More Dangerous Than Ever

In this new era of danger and denial, being pregnant can cost you your health, your freedom, or even your life.

3 years since Roe fell: we the people fight on

⚡️ TL;DR: (too long, didn’t read): 


Being pregnant in America is more dangerous than ever, thanks to MAGA.

Since our constitutional right to abortion fell when Roe v Wade was overturned by the conservative-majority on the Supreme Court three years ago:

  • Abortion bans have led to preventable deaths, traumatic injuries, rising maternal and infant mortality rates, and less access to reproductive health providers for more people.
  • Access to abortion care often means traveling hundreds of miles and paying thousands out of pocket.
  • Lawmakers are pushing to criminalize abortion care and restrict other reproductive health care like birth control and IVF.

But we’re not backing down. We’re organizing, mobilizing, and growing stronger every day.

Take Action

 

🤿 Dive Deeper: 3 Years Since Roe Fell 


If you’re reading this, chances are you remember where you were when you heard the devastating news that Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Three years after the conservative-majority on the Supreme Court toppled our constitutional right to abortion in the Dobbs decision, pregnant people are at greater risk than ever before.

In case you haven’t been following every headline, here’s a quick summary of the devastating and unprecedented crisis we’re facing today in the fight for reproductive freedom.

Pregnant people suffering and dying from abortion bans.

⚠️ Deadly Abortion Bans

Pregnant people suffering and dying from abortion bans.

Abortion bans have created chaos, confusion, and devastating harm. The results are tragic—and avoidable. Patients are denied the medical care they urgently need. Pregnant people are suffering traumatic harm, and in some cases died, leaving behind grieving families.

And we may never know the full scope of harm—because bans create silence, fear, and stigma. And because the agencies designed to track this data are being dismantled.

Read their Stories

The Data is Clear

  • 2x more likely to die People in abortion ban states are nearly twice as likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth.
  • Infant deaths up 5.6% Infant deaths rose by 5.6% in the 14 states that banned abortion after Roe fell.
  • 5 known deaths Countless lives have been lost, including the preventable deaths of Josseli Barnica in Texas, and Amber Nicole Thurman and Candi Miller in Georgia. And, we may never know the full scope of harm.

⚠️ Reproductive Health Care Gutted

Abortion bans are devastating access to reproductive health care.

We’re facing a shortage of reproductive health providers—and bans are making it worse. When abortion is under attack, all reproductive care suffers. Providers and doctors are:

And it’s not just abortion:
  • Birth control access is dropping in states with bans.
  • IVF treatments paused in Alabama after an extreme ruling based on so-called "fetal personhood" ideology.

⚠️ Crippling Costs and Fear of Criminalization

Some lawmakers want to charge abortion providers and patients with murder

Abortion now comes with forced travel, high costs—and the fear of criminal charges.

At least 10 states have introduced bills giving fetuses or embryos legal rights—opening the door to murder charges for abortion care (including Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas). While these bills did not pass, they represent a troubling trend, and indicate how far anti-abortion extremists will go to punish pregnant people and providers.

Criminalizing care and forcing people to cross state lines doesn’t stop abortions. It just makes them harder, more expensive, and more dangerous.

AT THE SAME TIME, ABORTION IS HARDER THAN EVER TO ACCESS:

1 in 5 patients now travel out of state for abortion

(that’s 2x what it was before).

In the South, some people must travel up to 700 miles for care.

And since more than half of all Black Americans living in the South, Black women are disproportionately harmed—impacting 57% of all Black women of reproductive age.

Abortion care itself can cost $500—$1,000,

plus travel, childcare, and lost wages.

For over 40% of abortion seekers, these costs can be financially devastating.

Most people pay entirely out of pocket, since many insurance plans don’t cover abortion.

 

✊🏿The Reproductive Freedom Crisis is Intersectional


Abortion bans don’t impact everyone equally.

They hit hardest for people already facing barriers to health care and safety—especially:

  • Black and Indigenous communities. Black women who already face 3-4x higher rates of maternal mortality are also targeted for criminalization more than other groups.
  • LGBTQ+ people, who are more likely to be denied care or mistreated by providers.
  • Immigrants, who often fear increased criminalization or immigration-related consequences like detention or deportation.
  • People with disabilities, who face discrimination and access issues in the medical system.
  • Young people, who face legal and financial hurdles to getting care.
  • And low-income communities, who are least able to travel or afford abortion out of pocket.

Reproductive freedom is about more than abortion. It’s about bodily autonomy, health equity, and justice—for everybody.

 

✅ Still True: 8 in 10 Americans Support the Legal Right to Abortion


Most Americans still believe in the right to abortion.

Yet Trump, Republicans, and their anti-abortion extremist allies keep pushing laws, policies, lies, and other sneaky tactics that take away care—from abortion to birth control to IVF.

With the daily churn of chaos from Trump 2.0, many people may not be aware of the continued attacks on our freedoms and efforts to ban abortion nationwide.

Explore meaningful ways you can take action now in today’s fight for reproductive freedom.

📣 For Every Attack, We Take Action


Three years after the Trump-orchestrated Dobbs decision that ended Roe, we lost a constitutional right.

But we didn’t lose our voice. We didn’t lose our community. We didn’t lose hope.

Our movement is growing—louder, stronger, and more united than ever and we want you to be a part of it.

Explore Ways to Take Action

3 Actions to Take Right Now


Resources for Abortion Care

Resources for Abortion Care

Abortion is health care. Abortion is freedom. Share these resources with others to protect yourself and your community.

Sign Up to Volunteer

Sign Up to Volunteer

It will take all of us doing everything we can to build the future we want. Will you join the fight for reproductive freedom and become a volunteer today?

📣 Spread the Word


Help us reach as many people as possible. Share these posts to let others know about the atrocities since Roe fell.

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