Amanda Short - Yesterday
© Provided by Star PhoenixRisa Payant, executive director of Planned Parenthood Regina, outside of her home on Friday, June 24, 2022 in Regina. TROY FLEECE / Regina Leader-Post
Reproductive and sexual health clinics across Canada have been engaged in discussions about the many what-ifs on the horizon if the Roe v. Wade decision was overturned in the United States.
One of the subjects has been the potential for an influx of Americans turning to their northern neighbour for abortion access.
On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 50-year-old ruling, removing constitutional protections on abortion and giving states the ability to set their own laws on access.
“It’s heartbreaking what’s happening in the United States; access to reproductive and sexual freedom is kind of a pillar of human rights,” said Planned Parenthood Regina executive director Risa Payant.
Clinics say that while the will is there to accept people and provide them care, they don’t have the capacity — and Saskatchewan is no different, Payant said.
Advocates say access to abortion is already a patchwork across the province . Meeting an even greater demand “is just unrealistic at this point, when we don’t have the capacity to support the needs of Saskatchewan residents,” Pavant said.
“The reality within Saskatchewan is that there are still pretty significant barriers to access to abortion.”
The court’s reversal is expected to lead to abortion bans in about half of the United States, including some states bordering Canada. North Dakota still has a pre-Roe anti-abortion law. Montana passed legislation regarding abortion in 2019 that’s currently barred by the U.S. Constitution.
Advocates say a person’s ability to access abortion in Saskatchewan depends on several factors, ranging from their location to the willingness of a practitioner or pharmacist .
Planned Parenthood’s physical location in Regina is already being closed as the organization searches for a new site, which only increases gaps in services — not only to abortion, but to other reproductive and sexual health care, Payant said.
Another major barrier is misinformation and stigma around abortion, both of which are likely to increase with the swell of conversation around abortion in North America.
“Here in our province, it’s really difficult for people to find the information they need about reproductive choice,” she said. “And so it is important for us to not just focus on legislation, but to focus on broader advocacy efforts, and really reducing the stigma around accessing what are very standardized and normal health-care services like abortion.”
When the decision first made headlines in the United States, Saskatchewan Minister Responsible for the Status of Women Laura Ross insisted that there are no roadblocks to accessing sexual health services like abortion in the province.
On Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government will ensure women across Canada have access to sexual and reproductive health services.
Payant said she would like to see governments making sure health-care systems have enough resources to continue providing those services.
“If our health-care system can’t actually meet the demand, then it’s sort of false to say that having our rights means there’s no barriers to access to terminations, for example,” she said.
The reversal of Roe v. Wade “shows that the fight for reproductive rights is never over,” NDP Justice Critic Nicole Sarauer said in a media release.
“The same political forces determined to overturn hard-won reproductive rights in the United States also exist here in Canada.”
A statement from the provincial government said Saskatchewan will continue to follow the Canada Health Act.
“A US Supreme Court ruling has no legal impact on women’s reproductive rights in Canada,” it said.
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