Current:Home > ScamsDozens of Idaho obstetricians have stopped practicing there since abortions were banned, study says -前500条预览:
Dozens of Idaho obstetricians have stopped practicing there since abortions were banned, study says
View
Date:2025-04-15 23:03:01
BOISE, Idaho. (AP) — More than 50 Idaho obstetricians have stopped practicing in the state since a near-total abortion ban took effect in August 2022, according to a newly released report.
Data compiled by the Idaho Physician Well-Being Action Collaborative also shows that only two obstetricians moved to the state to practice in the last 15 months, the Idaho Statesman reported on Tuesday. Obstetricians provide health care during pregnancy and childbirth.
The number of obstetricians in Idaho decreased from 227 in 2022 to about 176 in 2023, a decline of 51 doctors, the report said. The Idaho Physician Well-Being Action Collaborative was created in 2018 by local doctors to address problems affecting physicians and patients in Idaho communities, according to its website.
The numbers “should concern every person living in or considering a move to Idaho,” the Idaho Coalition for Safe Healthcare said this week in a news release. The coalition is the parent group of the Idaho Physician Well-Being Action Collaborative.
Additionally, the report said two hospital obstetrics programs — at West Bonner General Health in Sandpoint and at Valor Health in Emmett — have closed since Idaho’s law banning abortion took effect, the report said.
A third hospital obstetrics program is in “serious jeopardy” of closing, the report also said.
Only 22 of 44 counties in Idaho have access to any practicing obstetricians, the report said. About 85% of obstetricians and gynecologists in Idaho practice in the seven most populous counties.
Idaho banned nearly all abortions after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Idaho makes it a crime with a prison term of up to five years for anyone who performs or assists in an abortion.
Post-Roe, many maternal care doctors in restrictive states are deciding whether to stay or go. They weigh tough questions about medical ethics, their families and whether they can provide the best care without risking their careers or prison time.
Dr. Kylie Cooper, a maternal-fetal specialist, left Idaho last year. She told The Associated Press at the time that it was a very difficult decision but that she and her family needed to be where they felt reproductive health care was protected and safe.
Data also shows Idaho is at the 10th percentile of maternal mortality outcomes, meaning 90% of the country has better maternal and pregnancy outcomes than Idaho.
“In a time when we should be building our physician workforce to meet the needs of a growing Idaho population and address increasing risks of pregnancy and childbirth, Idaho laws that criminalize the private decisions between doctor and patient have plunged our state into a care crisis that unchecked will affect generations of Idaho families to come,” Dr. Caitlin Gustafson, an OB-GYN and the board president of the Idaho Coalition for Safe Healthcare Foundation, said in the news release.
The loss of obstetricians further strains a health system that was already experiencing a physician shortage, the release said. The national average of live births a year per obstetrician is 94 compared to 107 in Idaho, the news release said.
veryGood! (17)
Related
- Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
- Former American Ninja Warrior Winner Drew Drechsel Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Child Sex Crimes
- Bolivian army leader arrested after apparent coup attempt
- Lionel Messi to rest for Argentina’s final Copa America group match against Peru with leg injury
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- Starbucks introduces caffeinated iced drinks. Flavors include melon, tropical citrus
- The Federal Reserve's preferred inflation tracker shows cooling prices. Here's the impact on rates.
- Federal judge temporarily stops Oklahoma from enforcing new anti-immigration law
- McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
- J.Crew Factory’s 4th of July Sale Has the Cutest Red, White & Blue Dresses up to 70% off Right Now
Ranking
- Romantasy reigns on spicy BookTok: Recommendations from the internet’s favorite genre
- Nancy Silverton Gave Us Her No-Fail Summer Party Appetizer, Plus the Best Summer Travel Tip
- Hawks trading Dejounte Murray to Pelicans. Who won the deal?
- Amazon is reviewing whether Perplexity AI improperly scraped online content
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Dick Vitale reveals his cancer has returned: 'I will win this battle'
- Argentina, Chile coaches receive suspensions for their next Copa America match. Here’s why
- Lighting strike on wet ground sent 7 from Utah youth church group to hospital
Recommendation
Civic engagement nonprofits say democracy needs support in between big elections. Do funders agree?
Mount Everest's melting ice reveals bodies of climbers lost in the death zone
Former American Ninja Warrior Winner Drew Drechsel Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Child Sex Crimes
Nicole Scherzinger Explains Why Being in the Pussycat Dolls Was “Such a Difficult Time
Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
An attacker wounds a police officer guarding Israel’s embassy in Serbia before being shot dead
BBMak Is Back Here With a Rare Update 2 Decades After Their Breakup
Mavericks trade Tim Hardaway Jr. and three second-round picks to Pistons