How Kamala Harris can prioritize reproductive health for low-income patients and patients of color
Read the rest of this series here. The rest of this series can be found here. As a woman who grew up in Texas, it was a shock to learn that reproductive rights, which everyone assumed had been “settled”, could be taken away. Since then, 23 state have enacted partial or total abortion bans. Texas has enacted a total ban on abortion with limited exceptions. Worse, Texas’ draconian SB 8 allows private citizens to sue abortion providers and anyone who aids someone seeking an abortion after six weeks of pregnancy–before most people know they are pregnant–criminalizing abortion on an unprecedented level.
While it is true that many states have successfully codified abortion rights post-Dobbs, I know that relying only on a state-based strategy in Texas is a long shot. Harris, as the Democratic nominee, needs to push for increased access to reproductive health care at the federal level. Harris has already proven to be a candidate that will speak more honestly about abortion, without preemptively cowing conservatives like Hillary Clinton did with her infamous “safe legal and rare” line. Women of color, especially those with low incomes, have higher rates of maternal mortality. Black women’s maternal mortality is nearly three times that of white women. We know the South is a concentration of women of color and low-income women who are disproportionately impacted by restrictions on interstate travel and abortion bans. These restrictions limit access to care and worsen health disparities, leaving many people of colour in the region with no safe options for essential reproductive services. Harris’ rhetoric and awareness must be translated into policy and action. Harris could, for example, use FDA regulations to override state bans and support interstate travel in order to access reproductive care. As abortion is a health issue, I am interested to see how Harris will continue to push the EACH Woman Act as president. She proposed it during her tenure as a California Senator. This act aims to repeal the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits federal funds from being used for abortion services, and would make it easier for low-income people and people of color to access abortion care.
Finally, Harris must push for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to monitor maternal and infant deaths in states, especially in anti-abortion states, to prevent these states from obscuring the effects of their policies. Texas, for instance, appointed a doctor who is anti-abortion to its maternal mortality panel and could potentially refuse to participate in the federal maternal death measurement system. The federal oversight of harmful policies is essential to ensure accountability after Roe. We know that abortions have increased despite bans since Dobbs and that maternal mortality rates in states with abortion bans are higher. I’m a young woman of colour navigating adulthood under this new, bleak reality. It is important to me that Harris takes concrete steps that protect abortion access at the federal level.
