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The effect of post-Dobbs abortion bans on abortion access among American Indian and Alaska native women
1School of Public Administration, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, United States.
Background:
American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) women have faced more restricted access to abortion care relative to other women for decades. The Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization likely further restricted their access.
Data And Methods:
Using 2021-2023 data from Caitlin Myers' Abortion Access Dashboard, I estimate the effect of post-Dobbs abortion bans on abortion access for AI/AN women by census tract urbanicity.
Results:
Before post-Dobbs abortion bans, rural AI/AN women had an average 1-way travel time to the nearest abortion facility of 129 minutes, significantly greater than the average 1-way travel time for rural non-Hispanic White women (99 minutes; P-value < 0.05). After post-Dobbs abortion bans, the average 1-way travel time for rural AI/AN women increased by 97 minutes (P-value < 0.10). Urban AI/AN women had a shorter travel time at baseline but experienced a larger increase in travel time after Dobbs.
Conclusion:
Post-Dobbs abortion bans further reduced access to abortion care for AI/AN women. While additional research is needed to determine the impact of abortion bans on abortion and birth rates among AI/AN women, the findings presented here may be helpful to Tribal Nations concerned about their citizens' access to abortion care and may inform public policy decisions for this historically underserved population.
