Abortion in Washington

Abortion in Washington is legal. 60% of adults said in a poll by the Pew Research Center that abortion should be legal in all or most cases.

Washington currently has nineteen abortion clinics. The number of clinics has declined over the years, with 95 in 1982, 65 in 1992 and 33 in 2014.  There were 17,710 legal abortions performed in the state in 2014, and 17,098 in 2015.

Terminology
Main article: Abortion

The abortion debate most commonly relates to the "induced abortion" of an embryo or fetus at some point in a pregnancy, which is also how the term is used in a legal sense.[note 1] Some also use the term "elective abortion", which is used in relation to a claim to an unrestricted right of a woman to an abortion, whether or not she chooses to have one. The term elective abortion or voluntary abortion describes the interruption of pregnancy before viability at the request of the woman, but not for medical reasons.[1]

Anti-abortion advocates tend to use terms such as "unborn baby", "unborn child", or "pre-born child",[2][3] and see the medical terms "embryo", "zygote", and "fetus" as dehumanizing.[4][5] Both "pro-choice" and "pro-life" are examples of terms labeled as political framing: they are terms which purposely try to define their philosophies in the best possible light, while by definition attempting to describe their opposition in the worst possible light. "Pro-choice" implies that the alternative viewpoint is "anti-choice", while "pro-life" implies the alternative viewpoint is "pro-death" or "anti-life".[6] The Associated Press encourages journalists to use the terms "abortion rights" and "anti-abortion".[7]

Context
See also: Abortion in the United States

Free birth control correlates to teenage girls having a fewer pregnancies and fewer abortions. A 2014 New England Journal of Medicine study found such a link.  At the same time, a 2011 study by Center for Reproductive Rights and Ibis Reproductive Health also found that states with more abortion restrictions have higher rates of maternal death, higher rates of uninsured pregnant women, higher rates of infant and child deaths, higher rates of teen drug and alcohol abuse, and lower rates of cancer screening.[8]

According to a 2017 report from the Center for Reproductive Rights and Ibis Reproductive Health, states that tried to pass additional constraints on a women's ability to access legal abortions had fewer policies supporting women's health, maternal health and children's health.  These states also tended to resist expanding Medicaid, family leave, medical leave, and sex education in public schools.[9] According to Megan Donovan, a senior policy manager at the Guttmacher Institute, states have legislation seeking to protect a woman's right to access abortion services have the lowest rates of infant mortality in the United States.[9]

Poor women in the United States had problems paying for menstrual pads and tampons in 2018 and 2019. Almost two-thirds of American women could not pay for them. These were not available through the federal Women, Infants, and Children Program (WIC).[10] Lack of menstrual supplies has an economic impact on poor women.  A study in St. Louis found that 36% had to miss days of work because they lacked adequate menstrual hygiene supplies during their period.  This was on top of the fact that many had other menstrual issues including bleeding, cramps and other menstrual induced health issues.[10] This state was one of a majority that taxed essential hygiene products like tampons and menstrual pads as of November 2018.[11][12][13][14]

History

Legislative history

By 1950, the state legislature passed a law stating that a woman who had an abortion or actively sought to have an abortion regardless of whether she went through with it were guilty of a criminal offense.[15]

Abortion was made legal in 1970. Prior to that, it was illegal in the state with a therapeutic exception if the life of the mother was at risk.[16] In 1971, the state repealed its statute that said inducing an abortion was a criminal offense.[17][18] Hawaii, New York, Alaska and Washington were the first states to repeal their abortion laws in the pre-Roe v. Wade era.[19] Still, state law in 1971 required that any woman getting a legal abortion in the state needed to be a resident for some specific period between 30 and 90 days.[18]

As of 2017, Washington State, New Mexico, Illinois, Alaska, Maryland, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Jersey allow qualified non-physicians to prescribe drugs for medical abortions only.[20] In August 2018, the state had a law to protect the right to have an abortion.[21] In February 2019, the Washington State Attorney General issued an opinion that the physician-only clause of Washington State abortion law (I-120) was unenforceable, and that aspiration and medication abortion prior to viability was within the scope of nurse practitioners and physician assistants.[22] As of May 14, 2019, the state prohibited abortions after the fetus was viable, generally some point between week 24 and 28. This period uses a standard defined by the US Supreme Court in 1973 with the Roe v. Wade ruling.[23][24]

Ballot box history

In 1970, Washington held a referendum on legalizing early pregnancy abortions, becoming the first state to legalize abortion through a vote of the people.[25] When Washington made abortion legal by referendum, it was the first state in the country to do so.[18] In 1991, a ballot box measure passed that made abortion legal up to the point where a fetus was viable.[24][26]

Judicial history

The US Supreme Court's decision in 1973's Roe v. Wade ruling meant the state could no longer regulate abortion in the first trimester.[15] The 1989 US Supreme Court case Webster vs. Reproductive Health Services was about Missouri State's law that said  "life begins at conception".  A provision of the law said public facilities could not be used to perform abortions.  This provision was ruled unconstitutional, but for the first time since 1973, the US Supreme Court did not cite reaffirm Roe v. Wade in their decision.[27]

Clinic history
See also: Abortion clinic

Between 1982 and 1992, the number of abortion clinics in the state declined by thirty, going from 95 in 1982 to 65 in 1992.[28] In 2014, there were 33 abortion clinics in the state.[29] In 2014, 64% of the counties in the state did not have an abortion clinic. That year, 15% of women in the state aged 15 – 44 lived in a county without an abortion clinic.[21] In March 2016, there were 35 Planned Parenthood clinics in the state.[30] In 2017, there were 34 Planned Parenthood clinics in a state with a population of 1,645,293 women aged 15 – 49 of which 26 offered abortion services.[31]

Statistics

In 1990, 606,000 women in the state faced the risk of an unintended pregnancy.[28] In 2014, 60% of adults said in a poll by the Pew Research Center that abortion should be legal in all or most cases.[32] In 2017, the state had an infant mortality rate of 3.9 deaths per 1,000 live births.[9]

Number of reported abortions, abortion rate and percentage change in rate by geographic region and state in 1992, 1995 and 1996[33]
Census division and stateNumberRate% change 1992–1996
199219951996199219951996
US total1,528,9301,363,6901,365,73025.922.922.9–12
Pacific368,040290,520288,19038.730.530.1–22
Alaska2,3701,9902,04016.514.214.6–11
California304,230240,240237,83042.133.433–22
Hawaii12,1907,5106,9304629.327.3–41
Oregon16,06015,59015,05023.922.621.6–10
Washington33,19025,19026,34027.720.220.9–24
Number, rate, and ratio of reported abortions, by reporting area of residence and occurrence and by percentage of abortions obtained by out-of-state residents, US CDC estimates
Location Residence Occurrence % obtained by

out-of-state residents

 Year Ref
No. Rate^ Ratio^^ No. Rate^ Ratio^^
Washington17,58312.619817,71012.72004.92014[34]
Washington 17,230 12.2 194 17,098 12.1 192 4.5 2015 [35]
Washington 17,140 11.9 189 17,080 11.9 189 3.8 2016 [36]
^number of abortions per 1,000 women aged 15–44; ^^number of abortions per 1,000 live births

Illegal abortion deaths

Between 1945 and 1969, there were thirteen reported deaths of women in the Seattle area by the Seattle Times as a result of botched illegal abortions.[16] In the period between 1972 and 1974, there was zero recorded illegal abortion deaths in the state.[37]

Martha Alit died from a botched illegal abortion in 1954, leaving behind 9 children.[16] Beatrice Fisher died in 1945 after a botched abortion performed by surgeon Dr. Frank C. Hart.  He was sentenced to 20 years in prison as a consequence of her death.[16] Mary Johnson, Beulah LeClair, Patricia Dickinson, Patricia Parrish, Bettye Porter and Irene Timmons all died as a result of botched illegal abortions between 1945 and 1969 in the Seattle area.[16]

Claudette Sayles died on July 30, 1960, from a botched abortion.  Murder charges were brought against the person who performed it.[16] Sharon Hoag died on February 1, 1963, from a botched illegal abortion. Lee Blue performed the abortion that resulted in her death; he had already been sent to prison twice before for providing abortions and the third conviction resulted in a life sentence.[16] 24-year-old Raisa Trytiak was found dead on February 8, 1967 after having an illegal abortion when she was six months pregnant.  Her official cause of death was listed as embolism from a botched abortion. 61-year-old Jack Blight was tried for manslaughter in her death, found guilty and given 20 years of probation.[16] Newlywed 22-year-old Elizabeth Zack Staley from Olympia died from an illegal abortion in March 1967 that was performed by her husband, Ronald Jae Staley, and a 19-year-old female friend.  Staley was sentenced to 15 years in prison after being found guilty of abortion and manslaughter.[16]

Abortion financing
State Medicaid coverage of medically necessary abortion services. Navy blue: Medicaid covers medically necessary abortion for low-income women through legislation. Royal blue: Medicaid covers medically necessary abortions for low-income women under court order. Gray: Medicaid denies abortion coverage for low-income women except for cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment.

17 states including Washington use their own funds to cover all or most "medically necessary" abortions sought by low-income women under Medicaid, 13 of which are required by State court orders to do so.[38] In 2010, the state had 14,236 publicly funded abortions, of which were zero federally funded and 14,236 were state funded.[39]

Abortion rights views and activities
2018--Indivisible demonstration in Olympia regarding Brett Kavanaugh.

Protests

Women from the state participated in marches supporting abortion rights as part of a #StoptheBans movement in May 2019.[40]

Views

Women in Film Executive Director Kirsten Schaffer said of Georgia and other states similar restrictive abortion bans passed in early 2019, "A woman's right to make choices about her own body is fundamental to her personal and professional well-being. [...] We support people who make the choice not to take their production to Georgia or take a job in Georgia because of the draconian anti-choice law. To that end, we've compiled a list of pro-choice states that offer meaningful tax rebates and production incentives, and encourage everyone to explore these alternatives: California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Washington."[41]

Anti-abortion views and activities
Seattle Women's March 2019

Violence

Two documented arson attacks on abortion clinics took place in 1983 including one in Washington. Between this attack and one in Virginia, over US$500,000 in damage was done to the two clinics.[42] On June 11, 2001, an unsolved bombing took place at a clinic in Tacoma, Washington, destroyed a wall, resulting in $6,000 in damages.[43] On September 4, 2015, a Planned Parenthood clinic in Pullman, Washington was intentionally set on fire. No injuries were reported due to the time of day, but the FBI was involved because of a history of domestic terrorism against the clinic.[note 2] The crime was never solved. The clinic reopened six months later.[44]

Footnotes
  1. According to the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade:
    (a) For the stage prior to approximately the end of the first trimester, the abortion decision and its effectuation must be left to the medical judgement of the pregnant woman's attending physician. (b) For the stage subsequent to approximately the end of the first trimester, the State, in promoting its interest in the health of the mother, may, if it chooses, regulate the abortion procedure in ways that are reasonably related to maternal health. (c) For the stage subsequent to viability, the State in promoting its interest in the potentiality of human life may, if it chooses, regulate, and even proscribe, abortion except where it is necessary, in appropriate medical judgement, for the preservation of the life or health of the mother.
    Likewise, Black's Law Dictionary defines abortion as "knowing destruction" or "intentional expulsion or removal".
  2. Rachel Alexander & Chad Sokol (September 4, 2015). "Planned Parenthood fire determined to be arson". Spokesman-Review.

References
  1. Watson, Katie (20 Dec 2019). "Why We Should Stop Using the Term "Elective Abortion"". AMA Journal of Ethics. 20: E1175-1180. doi:10.1001/amajethics.2018.1175. PMID 30585581. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  2. Chamberlain, Pam; Hardisty, Jean (2007). "The Importance of the Political 'Framing' of Abortion". The Public Eye Magazine. 14 (1).
  3. "The Roberts Court Takes on Abortion". New York Times. November 5, 2006. Retrieved January 18, 2008.
  4. Brennan 'Dehumanizing the vulnerable' 2000
  5. Getek, Kathryn; Cunningham, Mark (February 1996). "A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing – Language and the Abortion Debate". Princeton Progressive Review.
  6. "Example of "anti-life" terminology" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-27. Retrieved 2011-11-16.
  7. Goldstein, Norm, ed. The Associated Press Stylebook. Philadelphia: Basic Books, 2007.
  8. Castillo, Stephanie (2014-10-03). "States With More Abortion Restrictions Hurt Women's Health, Increase Risk For Maternal Death". Medical Daily. Retrieved May 27, 2019.
  9. "States pushing abortion bans have highest infant mortality rates". NBC News. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
  10. Mundell, E.J. (January 16, 2019). "Two-Thirds of Poor U.S. Women Can't Afford Menstrual Pads, Tampons: Study". US News & World Report. Retrieved May 26, 2019.
  11. Larimer, Sarah (January 8, 2016). "The 'tampon tax,' explained". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 11, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  12. Bowerman, Mary (July 25, 2016). "The 'tampon tax' and what it means for you". USA Today. Archived from the original on December 11, 2016. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  13. Hillin, Taryn. "These are the U.S. states that tax women for having periods". Splinter. Retrieved 2017-12-15.
  14. "Election Results 2018: Nevada Ballot Questions 1-6". KNTV. Retrieved 2018-11-07.
  15. Buell, Samuel (1991-01-01). "Criminal Abortion Revisited". New York University Law Review. 66: 1774–1831.
  16. "When Abortion was Illegal (and Deadly): Seattle's Maternal Death Toll - Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project". depts.washington.edu. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  17. Reagan, Leslie J. (1998-09-21). When Abortion Was a Crime: Women, Medicine, and Law in the United States, 1867–1973. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520216570.
  18. Tyler, C. W. (1983). "The public health implications of abortion". Annual Review of Public Health. 4: 223–258. doi:10.1146/annurev.pu.04.050183.001255. ISSN 0163-7525. PMID 6860439.
  19. "Medicine: Abortion on Request". Time. March 9, 1970. Retrieved 2012-10-15. (subscription required)
  20. "Study: Abortions Are Safe When Performed By Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants, Certified Nurse Midwives". Retrieved 25 January 2017.
  21. businessinsider (2018-08-04). "This is what could happen if Roe v. Wade fell". Business Insider (in Spanish). Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  22. "Authority of Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants to Perform Pre-Viability Aspiration Abortions". Attorney General of Washington State. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  23. Lai, K. K. Rebecca (2019-05-15). "Abortion Bans: 8 States Have Passed Bills to Limit the Procedure This Year". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  24. "Are there *any* states working to protect abortion rights?". Well+Good. 2019-05-17. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
  25. "Abortion Reform in Washington State - HistoryLink.org". www.historylink.org. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  26. "How Washington state made its abortion laws Trump-proof". The Seattle Times. 2018-08-15. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
  27. Tribune, Chicago. "Timeline of abortion laws and events". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  28. Arndorfer, Elizabeth; Michael, Jodi; Moskowitz, Laura; Grant, Juli A.; Siebel, Liza (December 1998). A State-By-State Review of Abortion and Reproductive Rights. Diane Publishing. ISBN 9780788174810.
  29. Gould, Rebecca Harrington, Skye. "The number of abortion clinics in the US has plunged in the last decade — here's how many are in each state". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  30. Bohatch, Emily. "27 states with the most Planned Parenthood clinics". thestate. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  31. "Here's Where Women Have Less Access to Planned Parenthood". Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  32. "Views about abortion by state - Religion in America: U.S. Religious Data, Demographics and Statistics". Pew Research Center. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  33. "Abortion Incidence and Services in the United States, 1995-1996". Guttmacher Institute. 2005-06-15. Retrieved 2019-06-02.
  34. Jatlaoui, Tara C. (2017). "Abortion Surveillance — United States, 2014". MMWR. Surveillance Summaries. 66 (24): 1–48. doi:10.15585/mmwr.ss6624a1. ISSN 1546-0738. PMID 29166366.
  35. Jatlaoui, Tara C. (2018). "Abortion Surveillance — United States, 2015". MMWR. Surveillance Summaries. 67 (13): 1–45. doi:10.15585/mmwr.ss6713a1. ISSN 1546-0738. PMC 6289084. PMID 30462632.
  36. Jatlaoui, Tara C. (2019). "Abortion Surveillance — United States, 2016". MMWR. Surveillance Summaries. 68. doi:10.15585/mmwr.ss6811a1. ISSN 1546-0738.
  37. Cates, Willard; Rochat, Roger (March 1976). "Illegal Abortions in the United States: 1972–1974". Family Planning Perspectives. 8 (2): 86. doi:10.2307/2133995. JSTOR 2133995. PMID 1269687.
  38. Francis Roberta W. "Frequently Asked Questions". Equal Rights Amendment. Alice Paul Institute. Archived from the original on 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2009-09-13.
  39. "Guttmacher Data Center". data.guttmacher.org. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  40. Bacon, John. "Abortion rights supporters' voices thunder at #StopTheBans rallies across the nation". USA Today. Retrieved May 25, 2019.
  41. Low, Matt Donnelly,Gene Maddaus,Elaine; Donnelly, Matt; Maddaus, Gene; Low, Elaine (May 28, 2019). "Netflix the Only Hollywood Studio to Speak Out in Attack Against Abortion Rights (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved 2019-06-02.
  42. Jacobson, Mireille; Royer, Heather (December 2010). "Aftershocks: The Impact of Clinic Violence on Abortion Services". American Economic Journal: Applied Economics. 3: 189–223. doi:10.1257/app.3.1.189.
  43. "Blast Damages Clinic Used for Abortions". The New York Times. 2001-06-12. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  44. Joel Connelly, Planned Parenthood clinic in Pullman reopens six months after arson attack, Seattle Post-Intelligencer (February 5, 2016).
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