NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — Abortion rights advocates saw a problem: There’s a limited pool of medical providers who can legally perform abortions. In some states, one solution has been to authorize more providers beyond just physicians.
But to allow other providers — such as advanced practice registered nurses, physician assistants and certified nurse midwives — to perform early term abortions, changes in state laws were needed.
These legislative drives gained increased urgency once a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion showed the justices appear ready to overturn Roe v. Wade.
“All of these restrictions and bans that we’re seeing across the country are pointing more progressive states in the direction of, ‘How do we expand care?’” said Elizabeth Nash, state policy analysist for the Guttmacher Institute in New York, a think tank that supports abortion rights.
The proposed provider expansions face pushback from critics. They say letting non-doctors perform abortions could put women’s health at risk, especially if medical complications arise, and they question whether mid-level practitioners are qualified.
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