Roe v. Wade: one year later

Brittany Fonteno, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Arizona, discussed where we are at in Arizona one year after Roe v. Wade was overturned. In addition, Fonteno addressed the recent executive order by Governor Katie Hobbs stripping all 15 elected county officials of their ability to prosecute abortion cases.

Numerous states have passed restrictive legislation, with near-total abortion bans now in place in 14 states even as opinion polls show a majority of Americans want abortion legal in all or most cases.

Abortion is legal in Arizona, however Arizona bans abortion after the 15 weeks, six days mark and has some other restrictions on abortion access. In September 2022, an Arizona law completely banning abortion in Arizona went into effect, but right now that law is being challenged in the courts, and it is currently not in effect.

Despite facing various challenges throughout the past year, Fonteno said, “I’m proud to say that Planned Parenthood Arizona is still standing. Our doors are still open, and we are providing abortion care to our community.”

How has access to abortion changed over the past year?

“Access to abortion has changed significantly over the past year. First, it’s really important to understand that even before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, access to abortion was really fraught in Arizona. Roe allowed for over 40 restrictions on abortion access to be on the books before last summer. These are restrictions that were really designed to stigmatize abortion care and also keep patients away from care. Since the Supreme Court’s decision, we have seen a variety of additional restrictions,” Fonteno said.

A new restrictions include the move from fetal viability as the line to 15 weeks of pregnancy, as well as the other 40 restrictions that still remain. Many people are not able to access viable health care, so Planned Parenthood has tried to step up and provide resources for many communities and the influx of patients, according to Fonteno.