skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, July 26, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Arson attacks paralyze French high-speed rail network hours before start of Olympics, the Obamas endorse Harris for President; A NY county creates facial recognition, privacy protections; Art breathes new life into pollution-ravaged MI community; 34 Years of the ADA.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Harris meets with Israeli PM Netanyahu and calls for a ceasefire. MI Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces backlash for a protest during Netanyahu's speech. And VA Sen. Mark Warner advocates for student debt relief.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

There's a gap between how rural and urban folks feel about the economy, Colorado's 'Rural is Rad' aims to connect outdoor businesses, more than a dozen of Maine's infrastructure sites face repeated flooding, and chocolate chip cookies rock August.

MI Study: Banning Abortion Affects Women's Economic Well-Being

play audio
Play

Monday, November 7, 2022   

The debate surrounding abortion often turns on emotional and moral issues, but a Michigan-based policy institute says the economic impact of overturning Roe v. Wade affects the largest number of women.

Ahead of this week's vote on Proposal 3 to restore access to abortion, a Michigan League for Public Policy study reports that losing access to reproductive rights would profoundly affect the economic security of individual women, their families, and their communities.

Anne Kuhnen, a policy analyst with the League and author of the report, said abortion rights affect more than just a few women.

"In Michigan, one in six pregnancies ends in an abortion," said Kuhnen, "which really highlights why this issue is so important because this is clearly health care that pregnant people need and are relying on."

Proposal 3 would block the implementation of a 1931 Michigan law - still on the books - that makes most abortions a felony. Opponents claim the referendum would repeal current parental consent laws and allow minors to go through gender-reaffirming treatments without their parent's consent.

Kuhnen said her research shows that a loss of access to abortion care would have an outsized effect on marginalized communities.

"Black and Latino women especially are over-represented in some of the lowest-paying fields, like child care, low-wage health care jobs," said Kuhnen. "So, the negative effects of being unable to access these essential health-care services are really amplified for women of color."

Kuhnen said the social and economic well-being of children is directly linked to a mother's economic status.

Research shows children of women denied abortions are more likely to grow up in poverty and more likely to experience poor maternal bonding, which can affect social and cognitive development.

"The vast majority of Michiganders are paying out of pocket for their abortion," said Kuhnen. "And for someone who's earning minimum wage in Michigan, that's basically your entire paycheck for two weeks."

Disclosure: Michigan League for Public Policy/KIDS COUNT and Wayne State University contribute to our fund for reporting on Budget Policy & Priorities, Children's Issues, Civic Engagement, Education, Environment, Health Issues, Livable Wages/Working Families, Poverty Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
According to the Tax Policy Center, for higher-income earners, sales taxes consume a lower share of their income than for other households. (Vitalii Vodolazskyi/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

As Nebraska state lawmakers convene for a special session on property tax reform called by Gov. Jim Pillen, groups are weighing in on the details …


play sound

Traveling around rural Minnesota can be difficult but in more than half the state, nonprofit transit systems are helping people get where they need …

Social Issues

play sound

Student loan forgiveness took center stage on Thursday at the American Federation of Teachers conference. The Biden administration has canceled more …


Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has introduced legislation to codify the Chevron Deference into law. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Recent Supreme Court rulings on air pollution are affecting Virginia and the nation. Climate advocates said the court overstepped its bounds in …

Health and Wellness

play sound

World Hepatitis Day is this Sunday, and for the Oregon Health Authority, it's an opportunity to promote its plan to eliminate hepatitis across the …

The Gender Shades project revealed facial recognition performed poorest for darker-skinned women, and performed best for lighter-skinned men. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Columbia County, New York, is implementing new facial recognition and privacy policies, following new upgrades to the county's surveillance cameras…

Health and Wellness

play sound

New York disability-rights advocates are celebrating the 34th anniversary of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The 1990 …

Social Issues

play sound

As summer winds down and North Carolina students prepare to return to school, the focus shifts to the urgent need for better public education funding…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021