Clinics scramble to divert patients as states ban abortion

The Supreme Court’s ruling allowing states to regulate abortion has set off a travel scramble in some parts of the U.S., as abortion providers redirect patients to states that still allow the procedure.

A growing number of states are moving to mostly banning abortion. Clinics operators are moving, doctors are counseling crying patients, donations are pouring into nonprofits and one group is dispatching vans to administer abortion pills.

Some cities, like Kansas City and St. Louis, also are drafting plans to help with the travel logistics. Groups are trying to help with everything from gas cards for travel to connecting patients with small aircraft pilots willing to transport them to a clinic in another state.

Dr. Joseph Ottolenghi told KING-TV that Seattle could be a potential “safe haven” for women seeking an abortion.

“When patients are pushed out of their own state to receive abortion care, it also means you’re pushing doctors out of the state,” he said. “There are going to be doctors who leave Wyoming, who leave Idaho, who leave places where they’re not allowed to practice medicine the way they learned to and the way patients deserve care.”

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