Indies DEFEND ACCESS

Keep Our Clinics: An All-States approach

Abortion Care in the States

The primary goal of abortion restrictions is to close clinics. And we know, when clinics close they rarely reopen again. As we face a future without Roe v. Wade, we must continue to fight to keep independent clinics open. 

In states where abortion is no longer available or severely limited, our communities need these trusted sources of reproductive health care to support miscarriage management, post-abortion care visits, out- of-state abortion care navigation, and to continue serving as plaintiffs in court cases. The closure of these clinics and the loss of the expertise of clinic staff in the South and Midwest will greatly harm communities working to rebuild abortion access and is not only an abortion access issue, but also a racial and health care equity issue.

Furthermore, we need to support clinic expansion in states where abortion is protected. In addition to purchasing buildings and equipment and hiring additional staff, clinics will need increased funding for security and legal fees as they face new legal challenges and take necessary risks in an environment of increasing extremism. 

Just a few examples of what we have achieved so far: 

  • Supported legal expenses for clinics fighting to bring abortion care back to their states. For example, at Wellspring Access in Wyoming: this clinic and the patients they serve were written off by most major funders for legal resources because of their location and out of touch perceptions about their states’ abortion access values. Through Keep Our Clinics investment, Wellspring was able to bring a lawsuit that reinstated abortion access in their state – a pivotal access point in the mountain states. They continue their fight for abortion access in the courts. 
  • Upgraded security at clinics in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, and Virginia due to an increase in white supremacist violence and anti-abortion extremism.
  • Bought medical supplies & equipment in Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, and Washington due to an increase in patients from neighboring states. 
 

Your gift to Keep Our Clinics will help us keep clinics open in states, no matter how politically hostile, supporting patient access to abortion care today, tomorrow and for future generations to come.