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Legal and policy responses to the delivery of abortion care during COVID‐19
Author(s) -
Romanis Elizabeth Chloe,
Parsons Jordan A.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
international journal of gynecology and obstetrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.895
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1879-3479
pISSN - 0020-7292
DOI - 10.1002/ijgo.13377
Subject(s) - covid-19 , abortion , business , medicine , virology , political science , pregnancy , biology , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty) , genetics , outbreak
Access to abortion care has long been a global challenge, even in jurisdictions where abortion is legal. The COVID‐19 pandemic has exacerbated barriers to access, thereby preventing many women from terminating unwanted pregnancies for an extended period. In this paper, we outline existing and COVID‐specific barriers to abortion care and consider potential solutions, including the use of telemedicine, to overcome barriers to access during the pandemic and beyond. We explore the responses of governments throughout the world to the challenge of abortion access during the pandemic, which are an eclectic mix of progressive, neutral, and regressive policies. Finally, we call on all governments to recognize abortion as essential healthcare and act to ensure that the law does not continue to interfere with providers’ ability to adapt to circumstances and to guarantee safe and appropriate care not only during the pandemic, but permanently.