Planned Parenthood vs North Carolina
NORTH CAROLINA ABORTION RULING NOTICE.
The new NC State law, SB 20, introduced in July of 2023 required that no abortion pills or procedures be provided to women without first having an ultrasound to verify the presence of a pregnancy in the uterus (an intrauterine pregnancy). The ultrasound acts as a safety mechanism to detect and limit the medical risk to women from an undiagnosed, ectopic pregnancy— a life-threatening condition.
Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers then sued the State of North Carolina, claiming this ultrasound requirement is unreasonable and restricts a woman’s access to abortion. The court heard the suit and found in favor of Planned Parenthood, thereby removing the requirement of determining whether there is an actual viable pregnancy in the uterus of a woman seeking an abortion.
Things to consider…
Ultrasound verification prior to abortion.
Ultrasound verification reduces your risk – it’s basic standard of care.
To protect your health and safety, having an ultrasound to confirm an intrauterine pregnancy (pregnancy in the uterus) prior to any abortion procedure or pills is the basic standard of care – it should not be skipped for convenience. The ultrasound rules out ectopic pregnancy, which is a life-threatening emergency. You should expect this basic standard of care from any provider prior to them prescribing any medication or performing a surgery. At first, you may not have any symptoms of ectopic pregnancy.
Skipping ultrasound adds undue health risks
While it is faster and easier for the provider to dispense pills without ultrasound confirmation of pregnancy, it places an undue burden of risk on you, the patient.
An ectopic pregnancy is not “treated” or removed by an abortion procedure or abortion pills and could rupture at any moment, causing bleeding, infection, and even death.
Ectopic pregnancies are on the rise: 2% of all pregnancies in the USA are ectopic. [source:https://www.webmd.com/baby/pregnancy-ectopic-pregnancy ]
An ultrasound at Gateway Women’s Care is a confidential, free, non-invasive way to minimize the health risks to the abortion-seeking patient.