NORTH CAROLINA (Washington Insider Magazine) – On Wednesday, Governor Roy Cooper of North Carolina issued an executive order to improve the state’s access to reproductive healthcare.
The order takes a number of actions to defend the current services in North Carolina, including stipulating that patients who have abortions or medical professionals who perform them won’t face any legal repercussions for seeking out, offering, or receiving information regarding reproductive health care services.
The administrative decision was made little over 2 weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe v. Wade, a case that had protected women’s access to abortion for over 50 years.
Cooper’s order asserts that all cabinet departments, or those that are a part of the governor’s office, should cooperate with one another and look for ways to protect individuals or entities that are looking for, assisting, providing, or obtaining legal reproductive health care services in North Carolina.
It further specifies that cabinet entities may not demand that any pregnant employees of such agencies go to states where access to reproductive healthcare is restricted without regard to the pregnant employee’s health.
According to the ruling, it does not alter North Carolina law but rather guarantees that people living in the state would still be able to obtain abortions and other reproductive healthcare.
According to the directive, North Carolina is becoming a “critical access point” for people seeking reproductive health care as more states enforce abortion restrictions.
Cooper claimed in a statement on Wednesday that North Carolina has recently experienced a surge in the number of people travelling from other states to receive abortion care.
Cooper stated that one-third of the patients booked for abortions in North Carolina this week are from other states, citing statistics from Planned Parenthood South Atlantic.
According to Dr. Katherine Farris, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, getting patients the treatment they require is the abortion providers’ top focus in North Carolina.
According to the press release from Jenny Black, CEO and president of Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic, North Carolina voters must continue to back politicians who will uphold the state’s legalisation of abortion.
According to ABC NEWS, several eastern states have issued orders similar to Cooper’s in favor of abortion rights as states in the southeast have maintained to uphold abortion laws.
On Tuesday, the Democratic governors of Maine and Rhode Island both issued executive orders in favour of abortion rights that guarantee the safety of both abortion patients and doctors.
Last month, the Republican governor of Massachusetts issued an executive order to safeguard the availability of abortion services and ensure their legality in the state.
The practise of abortion after 6 weeks is prohibited in South Carolina. With the exception of rape and incest, abortion in Tennessee is now prohibited beyond six weeks.
Alabama has outlawed abortion fully, with no exceptions allowed for rape or incest.
