Out-of-state patients flock to Ohio as 24-hour wait, other abortion restrictions end

Ohio’s 24-hour waiting period for an abortion is gone, at least for now, and patients in Cincinnati are feeling the impact more than most.

That’s because half the patients here travel from another state to get an abortion.

Cincinnati’s only abortion provider, the Planned Parenthood Surgical Center in Mount Auburn, has become the best option for hundreds of people who are seeking abortions but live in states where the procedure is banned or heavily restricted.

For those patients, Planned Parenthood officials say, a judge’s decision last week to block enforcement of Ohio’s waiting period eliminated a major financial and logistical burden. It means one less day of paying for food and lodging and being away from work and family.

“We’re elated to see this,” said Maya McKenzie, spokeswoman for Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio, which runs the Cincinnati clinic. “This does open a huge door for patients, particularly those coming from out of state.”

McKenzie said out-of-state patients represent half of the roughly 400 patients who receive abortions at the Cincinnati clinic each month. She said most of those patients travel from Indiana and Kentucky, neighboring states where abortion services are unavailable either because of bans or ongoing legal disputes over bans.

The next most common home states for Cincinnati clinic patients are Tennessee, Georgia, West Virginia and Florida. Those states either ban all abortions or ban the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy.

McKenzie said Florida’s six-week ban, which took effect in May, is likely responsible for a 10% increase in patient volume in Cincinnati since this spring.

Abortion bans drive patients north to Cincinnati

A look at a map of states where abortion is banned or heavily restricted tells the tale: Virginia is the only state south of Ohio without significant restrictions. And for many, the easiest route to travel is Interstate 75, which runs from Florida through the Deep South and into the heart of Cincinnati.

“We are the southernmost clinic on I-75," said Nan Whaley, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio.

The state-by-state patchwork of abortion laws arose in 2022 after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade , which for a half century guaranteed a constitutional right to obtain an abortion. The court’s conservative majority ended that right and said states could make their own rules.

At first, Ohio joined other, Republican-led states by enacting restrictions, but the rules changed last year when Ohio voters added the right to an abortion to the state constitution .

The judge who last week blocked enforcement of Ohio’s 24-hour waiting period cited the new amendment in his ruling.

“A person’s right to reproductive freedom is now enshrined in the Ohio Constitution,” wrote Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David Young.

Whaley said the constitutional amendment, along with subsequent rulings rolling back restrictions, increased pressure on Planned Parenthood to improve and expand services because Ohio has become a destination for patients who can't get abortions elsewhere.

"We have a responsibility, not just to patients in Ohio," she said.

Battles continue over waiting period, abortion restrictions

Young’s ruling last week had an immediate impact. McKenzie said Cincinnati’s clinic performed three abortions Monday without observing the 24-hour waiting period.

The fight isn’t over, though. The decision last week will remain in place only until there’s a final decision on the legality of the waiting period, which state officials and abortion rights advocates continue to debate in Ohio’s courts.

Opponents of the waiting period describe it as an unconstitutional burden, but Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost has said he wants to preserve it because, he believes, waiting 24 hours is not at odds with Ohio’s new constitutional amendment.

“These are essential safety features designed to ensure that women receive proper care and make voluntary decisions,” Yost’s office said in a press release last week .

Whaley and others, however, argue that delaying the procedure is unnecessary and interferes with the patients’ ability to make decisions about their own care. They say it’s especially burdensome to women who must travel great distances to receive that care.

Since the end of Roe v. Wade, states where abortion remains legal have reported increases in patient volume like those seen in Cincinnati.

To handle that volume, Planned Parenthood has hired additional staff and created a team dedicated to helping out-of-state patients navigate the journey to Cincinnati. And while no plans are in place, Whaley said, opening another clinic is a possibility once the legal fights are over.

“We need to expand. We need to provide more service," Whaley said. "Now that we have the protection of the constitution, I think you'll see us providing more care."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Out-of-state patients flock to Ohio as 24-hour wait, other abortion restrictions end