As more women delay having children for a variety of reasons, the risks to mothers also increase.
While the reasons for delaying starting a family are typically personal, the Pew Charitable Trusts survey found that a growing number of women cited college, paying off student loans, or postponing marriage as their primary reasons.
According to a Pew Research Center survey, the average age at first pregnancy for most women has risen to 27.3 years old, with Asian women delaying pregnancy until age 31 on average and white women until age 28 on average.
But such a delay also comes with more risks, including preeclampsia (high blood pressure), gestational diabetes, premature birth, and stillbirth. The Cleveland Clinic also notes that women over 35 who want to conceive are also more susceptible to declining egg quality (leading to complications for the baby) and chronic illnesses.
It’s no wonder that many women who experience problems end up in emergency rooms and are forced to make the difficult decision to terminate the pregnancy.
It is common for fetuses to be nonviable, especially among older, first-time mothers. But under Idaho law, women who discover after six weeks that the fetus has lost its heartbeat may be forced to continue carrying the baby until its “due date.” The physical and psychological trauma of such actions is devastating not only for the mother, but also for her partner and other family and friends.
Does the Legislature really want to cause this kind of chaos in our state’s families?
Lawmakers may do so, but citizens don’t: A 2024 survey by the Idaho Institute for Public Policy and School of Public Service at Boise State University found that 58% of Idahoans surveyed said abortion should be legal in the state.
Currently, state law states that abortion can only be performed in cases of rape or incest, or to save the mother’s life. Other medical complications make the law murky for medical professionals and confusing for pregnant patients who need help managing their health. Some complications, especially for older women, may not mean death, but could mean stroke, heart attack, or other debilitating illnesses.
A June 27 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court at least temporarily blocked some state laws, allowing hospital emergency rooms to perform abortions to save the lives of mothers after six weeks of pregnancy. Previously, emergency rooms had flown high-risk patients out of state to treat them because doctors feared prosecution for acting in their patients’ best interests at home.
Idaho loses federal protections, forcing pregnant women to plan emergency air transport
The real question is, when will lawmakers listen to the will of the people?
Beyond the impact on women’s care during abortions, state abortion laws have also had a likely unintended consequence: They’ve led to a loss of doctors in rural counties where people already struggle to find adequate care.
Over the past two years, Idaho has lost 22% of its total obstetrician-gynecologists, and a report from the Idaho Physician Benefit Collaborative and the Idaho Coalition for Safe Care estimates that the state will lose 40 to 60 doctors between August 2022 and November 2023. And half of the state’s 44 counties have no obstetricians.
Loss of maternal health care means higher mortality rates and worse overall pregnancy outcomes. Currently, Idaho ranks in the bottom 10 percent of the country for maternal health care, and an exodus of physicians will only make the problem worse.
This has a ripple effect on other doctors, meaning the health care situation across the state is worsening. Without access to care, people are leaving the state.
Added to this is the contradiction of state Republicans’ opposition to in vitro fertilization for women who want to start a family but are unable to conceive normally.
What does the Party want: people who want families, or its desire to force people to have children, despite the dire consequences of a non-viable pregnancy for the family?
Overall, abortion is a form of medical care. Access to safe abortion is not mandatory for all women who become pregnant, but it is necessary for women who, for medical or personal reasons, cannot carry their fetus to term. As the old saying goes, if you don’t want an abortion, don’t have one.
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