Whether it is social stigma or state policy, abortion seekers are facing an intense amount of obstacles when it comes to accessing their abortion in Texas during the pandemic. To better understand how COVID-19 affected the landscape of abortion access, it was necessary to listen to the experiences of abortion seekers during the pandemic. Experts in the field of abortion advocacy were also interviewed to provide perspective on the trajectory of abortion access during COVID-19. Abortion seekers were screened through a survey to ensure they met the criteria of getting an abortion, living in Texas, and being 18+ while experts in the field were contacted through my personal activist network. COVID-19 exacerbated challenges that already existed in the landscape of abortion access in Texas. Misinformation and managing the tentative scheduling of clinics are two of the most prominent exacerbated challenges abortion seekers experience. This is followed by an increase in exposure to unsupportive families as well as the expenses that come with traveling to appointments. The additional COVID-19 related restrictions created consequences that embodied themselves as delays in receiving abortion care, a much lonelier process, and tentative employment. A positive outcome of COVID-19 is the potential of abortion care being integrated into Telehealth services that would severely decrease the public harassment abortion seekers and providers experience from antis standing outside of clinics, travel expenses, and the lack of privacy some might feel when going into a clinic.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc1944339 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Irby, Elsa Louise |
| Contributors | Henry, Lisa, Wasson, Christina, Caldwell-Ryan, Joci |
| Publisher | University of North Texas |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | Text |
| Rights | Public, Irby, Elsa Louise, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights Reserved. |
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