The State of Reproductive Healthcare In Texas
By Caitlin Rodriguez
Reproductive healthcare and who deserves access to it is a contentious topic, especially in Texas. Since the induction of HB2 or Senate Bill 1, in 2013, the access Texas women have to reproductive healthcare has becomes severely limited. The bill requires abortion clinics to meet ambulatory surgical center requirements, have admitting privileges within 30 miles of a hospital, and forces the 24-hour waiting period between receiving an ultrasound and an actual abortion. These regulations place a significant burden on women seeking abortions as well as women seeking other sources of healthcare. Follow three people's stories as they explain what it took for gain access to the resources they needed or to remain involved in advocating for women's rights in Texas.
Stories
Marissa Benton
Had an abortion 3 years ago at the age of 20
In 2013 at the age of 20 Marissa Benton found herself pregnant. She had just lost her apartment, was sleeping on a friend's couch and storing her things in the trunk of her car, Benton knew her waitressing job wouldn't be enough to sustain both herself and a baby. But she grappled with the decision to obain an abortion.
"I was really torn about it because of the fact that I've always thought it was wrong to get an abortion, that it was my fault and that I should be forced to deal with it," Benton said.
After a reassuring conversation with her mom, where Benton said her mom even shared her own abortion story, she then felt supported enough to go through with it. Her and the father came up with enough money because they agreed it would be unfair to bring a child into the world without the means to take care of it.
In order to get the procedure, Benton had to visit Planned Parenthood twice. because of the new mandatory sonogram bill that was implemented in Texas in 2012. The bill requires that a doctor perform a sonogram on any woman 24 hours before her abortion.
"The initial appointment where I had to listen to the heartbeat and see the sonogram sucked," Benton said. "All the doctor could do was tell me I didn't have to look if I didn't want to."
During her second appointment Benton chose to have an in-house abortion rather than a medically induced one. She was apprehensive about the pain of the procedure but said that "it wasn't too painful, but it definitely wasn't comfortable." For her, the two days following the abortion were the most difficult.
"They sent me home with a perscription for pain killers and told me to take a few days off work," Benton said. "The pain over the next two days was unbearable, I spent the whole time crying and begging for it to stop."
In a situation not uncommon for after having an abortion, Benton was unable to take the appropriate of time off of work for a full recovery. She returned to her job in the food service industry that required a lot of physical labor, something that the doctor advised against for at least two weeks. Benton ended up having to be hospitalized for heavy blood loss a few days later.
Now three years later Benton reflected on the decision that she said made her get her life together.
"It was very sobering to see how hard I hit rock bottom and see that I couldn't even support myself, much less a child. I can't even imagine where we would be if I hadn't done that, but I know I definitely wouldn't have been happy."
Kelly Phan
A volunteer for Planned Parenthood Texas Votes
Kelly Phan has been a volunteer for Planned Parenthood Texas Votes since 2013. As a branch of Planned Parenthood, the Texas organization describes itself as a statewide advocacy organization that will engage supporters of women’s health to fight to protect and expand women’s access to preventative and reproductive care, including abortion.
After the Wendy Davis filibuster in 2013 Phan was moved to action. She was still living in Houston and said that "it was the sheer vastness of the community that got involved" that moved here at an emotional level. That was the push that Phan needed to move to San Marcos, and later Austin, to be a part of Planned Parenthood Texas Votes.
"Young people have an immense amount of power in elections, and political access, and more often than not young people are in most need of affordable healthcare and abortion access. Being a volunteer I can reach out to young people of color and have that community building to keep these necessary things in Texas. "
Data
Reproductive health clinics in Texas have been closing since 2009 with a rapid increase in closures starting in 2012. The map below details the total number of clinics that existed in Texas in 2008 ( a total of 41) in comparrison with the number that exist today (a total of 10). That data is then further broken down in the charts below.
*Data obtained from an open records request filed with the Texas Department of State Health Services.
