If You Can’t Get an Abortion on Land, Can You Get One on a Boat?
A doctor explains her long-brewing plan to set up a floating clinic in the Gulf of Mexico.
BY CHRISTINA CAUTERUCCI
In the weeks since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, reproductive health clinics in states with abortion bans have been forced to curtail their services. This has been particularly acute in the South, where there will soon be no legal abortion services in a wide swath of the country. Some patients are now forced to travel hundreds of miles for care.
Someday soon, they may not have to. To serve patients on the Gulf Coast who may be closer to the water than an abortion clinic, Amy Autry, an OB-GYN and professor at the University of California San Francisco, is spearheading a project that would provide abortion services on a boat in federal waters a few miles off the coastline. The nonprofit is called PRROWESS, an acronym that stands for Protecting Reproductive Rights Of Women Endangered by State Statutes.
Federal laws don’t currently prohibit abortion, so a floating clinic could legally operate without running afoul of state laws. Autry, who previously worked as an abortion provider in Wisconsin, hopes the clinic will be open to patients about three weeks out of every month.
I spoke to Autry about her plans, the demand for a floating clinic, and the challenges she expects to face. Our conversation has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
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9 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.All I can say is EVERY DEMOCRAT IN THIS COUNTRY BETTER GET OUT AND VOTE...because if the GQP wins the House and the Senate...they WILL GUARANTEED win in 2024...and you know who they will reelect...the Marmalade Mussolini...and he will have his own little Gestapo...formed around the Proud Boys and Three Percenters and every other wackjob gun happy domestic terrorist group in the country...this is NOT a POSSIBILITY...it is GUARANTEED. Only way to stop them is GET OUT THE VOTE...NO MORE EXCUSES...NO MORE BS...WE PUT UP OR WE WILL BE SHUT UP...NO COMMON GROUND ANYMORE...you are going to have to travel with "papers" from now on...just like Nazi Germany...I am not kidding...not kidding for one instant. You have been warnd
phoenixone1
Level 8
July 17, 2022
0
I remember when Women on Waves was receiving criticism for the abortions they were doing near Ireland, and wondering how long it would take for that wonderful country to get free of their barbaric religious laws, and it never, ever crossed my mind that we'd be in the same situation. It's an expensive method, but everything should be considered.
Lauren
Level 8
July 16, 2022
2
Why not? The mob used to use this trick to have floating gambling.
BitFlipper
Level 8
July 16, 2022
3
How about a railroad that helps people get to clinics in Mexico that have been checked out and funded as a non-profit. Could be possibly helped by the cartels. Of course, I know nothing about actually doing this or the repercussions with Mexico. But they did help with a war against slavery.
dalefvictor
Level 8
July 16, 2022
2
Sounds like a great idea. I have one concern and that is that it would be fairly easy to sink the ship with everyone aboard.
dalefvictor
Level 8
July 16, 2022
3
Unfuckingbelievable that this sort of extreme thinking and planning is necessary in 2022.
silverotter11
Level 9
July 15, 2022
3
It's an interesting idea and I wish it wasn't necessary to even consider it, but for those states bordering the Gulf of Mexico, sadly it might be the best option, if laws in those states don't change.
Doing something so private and personal shouldn't require so many hoops for women to jump through. It's better to have some option rather than none or near impossible avenues. I will be curious to see if this will be deemed lawful. I hope so, for the sake of those it would serve.
Julie808
Level 8
July 15, 2022
2
How about on an airplane or helicopter?
racocn8
Level 9
July 15, 2022
1
The Airport which resides within state limits could refuse departure and/or landing clearance. A private runway wouldnt work either as the State could impound the aircraft for ILLEGAL activities. Offshore "could possibly work"...BUT...your point of "sabatage" and again Impounding watercraft for ILLEGAL activities...these fanatical freaks are desperate to control the endgame.
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