The town of Cactus on Jan. 29, 2020. Cactus is in the upper part of the Texas Panhandle, about 50 miles north of Amarillo .We’re testing using AI-powered tools to provide an audio version of this story. While this audio recording is machine-generated, the story was written by human journalists.— a weekly dispatch about the people, places and policies defining Texas, produced by Texas Tribune journalists living in communities across the state.
This medical desert lies in the backyard of Amarillo, where the long battle over abortion access has found a new front. Anti-abortion activists, led by Mark Lee Dickson, director of East Texas Right to Life, has pressured the city to approve an ordinance outlawing the use of city roads and highways for an abortion outside of Texas. Amarillo was chosen due to its proximity to states that offer abortion services.the ordinance — delivering a major loss for the so-called sanctuary city movement.
“The infrastructure is not in place for women to access the health care they need,” said Lindsay London, co-founder of the Amarillo Reproductive Freedom Alliance. “It all comes down to the bootstrap mentality of, ‘Figure it out.’” According to the Texas Organization of Rural and Community Hospitals, 28 rural Texas hospitals have closed since 2010, the most in the nation. This leaves underserved communities vulnerable, as any need for medical care could turn into a long drive.
Ramirez said for years, maternal care in Texas has been limited for women seeking care before, during and after pregnancy. The hurdles are reflected by the state’s maternal mortality numbers.for Texas, an average of 28 women die from causes related to pregnancy or postpartum per 100,000 births in the state, compared to 23.5 deaths on average in the U.S. Women in rural areas have a 9% higher chance of maternal mortality than those in urban areas.
As beneficial as it is, Christine Garner, a maternal and child health researcher in Amarillo, said signing up for Medicaid in a timely fashion is challenging in rural communities. Any delay can cost women from getting care early in their pregnancies, another factor that plays a role in maternal mortality. In Texas, 21% of people received care starting in
“By the time somebody goes to their first appointment, oftentimes that’s past the first trimester,” Garner said. “Every day can result in more complications and worse health.” Poage believes the law is meant to lack proper guidance, particularly because it’s unclear about what constitutes a medical emergency.
Source: Healthcare Press (healthcarepress.net)
Texas Politics Texas Policy Texas Government Abortion Health Care Politics State Government Texas Legislature Amarillo Women's Health
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