How South Dakota abortion access could change if SCOTUS overrules Roe v. Wade

If the U.S. Supreme Court chooses to overturn the landmark 1973 ‘Roe. v. Wade decision, as is largely expected after a draft of that decision was leaked recently, abortion access in South Dakota will come to an end.

The ruling is anticipated to come down sometime this month. And while 13 conservative states with trigger laws, including South Dakota, are poised to ban abortion immediately after the SCOTUS ruling, as of today abortion still remains legal for South Dakotans.

The Argus Leader sat down with three leaders to talk about what resources are available to people seeking abortions in South Dakota and what could change if Roe is overturned: Planned Parenthood North Central State’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Sarah Traxler; a health center manager at the state’s lone abortion clinic in Sioux Falls, Misty; and co-founder of the largest and only abortion fund in South Dakota, Justice Empowerment Network, Kim Floren.

An exam room on Monday, June 6, 2022, at Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls.

More: Here’s how South Dakota’s abortion stance could lead the way for a post-Roe America

Here’s what we found out.

Editor’s note: The Argus Leader has agreed to use Misty’s first name only due to her concerns for her and her family’s safety.

Abortions are still available, as SCOTUS ruling looms

The moment an overturned ruling on Roe is announced, abortions would be immediately banned in South Dakota.

But today, South Dakota’s Planned Parenthood clinic in Sioux Falls is still providing abortions to people seeking them. Staff has been working for months to inform patients on what an immediate ban looks like in South Dakota, explained Misty, who also oversees Sioux City, Iowa’s Planned Parenthood health center.

“[The immediate ban] is something our patients are aware of,” stated Misty. “We’re actively telling them because it’s extremely important to be very transparent.”

Map visual of abortion access across America by Guttmacher Institute, showing states “certain or likely to ban abortion” in orange, states “unlikely to ban abortion that would have the nearest provider” for those in states where abortion is banned in blue, and states “unlikely to ban abortion that would not have the nearest provider for people in states where abortion is banned” in gray.

The news of the SCOTUS opinion leak, for the most part, has not deterred South Dakotans from seeking abortions, said Misty. Though some patients have decided to schedule with other clinics when they hear about South Dakota’s trigger laws during confirmation calls.

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“We’re basically telling patients that when you show up to your appointment on Monday, or before then, the Supreme Court decision might be out,” she explained. “Roe would be overturned, we would not be able to see you for your abortion.”

More women choosing in-clinic abortions to avoid SD’s strict abortion pill laws, uncertainty of SCOTUS decision

Amid the uncertainty of a looming post-Roe South Dakota, Misty says women are increasingly choosing a one-visit, in-clinic abortion. A abortion via medication requires a total of three visits — the abortion consultation and the dispensing of the first abortion pill at the second visit, with a 72-hour waiting period in between, and a third visit, two weeks after the second visit, for follow-up.

More: Sens. Mike Rounds, John Thune say states should dictate abortion law, not Congress

What’s still being litigated is the state’s anti-coercion statute, adding an extra visit for the dispensing of the second abortion pill. That’s not including the informed-consent consultation with a pregnancy help center within the 72-hour waiting period.

Just a few weeks ago, Traxler saw a South Dakota patient who initially wanted a medication abortion, but got a procedural abortion instead. The patient feared not having access to an abortion provider if there were complications and follow-up needed, specifically with the uncertainty of the SCOTUS ruling.

“[With the potential failure rate of a medication abortion], she wanted a procedural abortion that day so she could be done and wouldn’t have to follow-up,” said Traxler.

Minnesota could see up to a 25% increase in demand, short-term spike in Iowa

Planned Parenthood is giving South Dakotans currently scheduling abortion appointments the option of keeping their appointment or rescheduling in neighboring, abortion-friendly states, like Minnesota and Iowa.

More: Gov. Kristi Noem’s appeal of abortion pills order put on hold

Based on the available data projections, Traxler says Planned Parenthood North Central States, stretching across South Dakota, North Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa, is expecting a 5-to-25% increase in demand for abortion services at Minnesota’s abortion clinic locations alone.

“That’s based on a [national] projection that only about 50% of those people who need an abortion would actually have the ability to travel,” stated Traxler.

Health Center Manager Misty stands in a consultation room on Monday, June 6, 2022, at Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls. Misty’s last name is being left out due to safety concerns.

That means the other half doesn’t have the means to travel, and are left with the option of continuing a pregnancy or finding a way to self-manage one.

More: ‘Coat-hanger cries are not far-fetched’: SD professors explain context of people’s fear, anger about abortion

In the short-term, Traxler and Misty say an uptick at the Sioux City clinic is likely. More than 70% of patients at the Iowa clinic are South Dakota residents, said Misty.

Sioux City, which only provides medication abortions, is expected to be fairly booked-out. The next options for South Dakota women seeking abortions, Misty says, would be the Planned Parenthood’s clinics in St. Paul and Omaha.

Sioux Falls has the largest concentration of South Dakota’s abortion-seeking population, according to an Argus Leader analysis on state abortion data. The travel to Omaha or St. Paul is 180-240 miles away, and obviously increases as you move into more rural parts of South Dakota.

South Dakota’s largest abortion fund hits record number of calls last month

The reality, however, is that many women won’t get the care they need, said Traxler. They’ll have to choose between keeping the child, or self-managing an abortion, which would be unsafe, she said.

The inability to travel would be an additional disadvantage for racial groups that already have barriers to health-care, stated Planned Parenthood North Central State’s Chief Medical Officer.

“This isn’t the case for Black and Indigenous women… women who are living paycheck to paycheck who already have children,” Traxler said.

More: We analyzed five years of South Dakota abortion data. Here’s what we found.

Indicators for patient status are fixed to the wall alongside an exam room on Monday, June 6, 2022, at Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls.

Sioux Falls’ reproductive health clinic works with Justice Empowerment Network, a local nonprofit dedicated making abortions accessible to South Dakotans, to assist people seeking abortions with funds already “falling through the cracks.”

From raising donations and booking hotels, to driving hours to state borders to get abortion pills, JEN has been operating since March 2020.

The abortion fund and support network, under the National Network of Abortion Funds, had its busiest month in May with a total of 90 callers, said JEN co-founder Kim Floren. They typically average 25 to 30 calls a month.

More: Here are four pending abortion policy battles that will come to South Dakota if Roe v. Wade falls

“I think it’s kind of a reflection of the greater economic situation that’s been happening [with inflation],” said Floren.

Floren says people who are calling and need funds to get an abortion don’t just need $100.

“They don’t have anything to put towards it,” she explained, especially with costly gas prices.

Floren isn’t expecting the call volume to slow down, and predicts more people will have to travel farther distance to get abortion care.

A waiting room for patients to receive further care instructions following an appointment on Monday, June 6, 2022, at Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls.

JEN’s volunteer staff gets calls from as far as Iowa and Nebraska, and won’t be able to meet the demand if it continues at its current rate, unless there’s an influx of donations and resources.

“We help prioritize South Dakota patients, but there just aren’t a lot of resources [in the Midwest],” Floren said. “But yeah, there’s no way we can keep up with it in the long-run.”

On the ground, Floren says she’s been seeing more women getting later abortions, or farther along in their abortions, as a result of widespread-tightened abortion access in the Midwest.

More: Ellis: Why South Dakota voters could relive abortion battles of 2006, 2008

“By the time a patient gets to the clinic, they’re in their second trimester and then the costs go up,” she said.

In the meantime, with Roe on its last legs, JEN is still providing funds for transportation, food, hotel costs and prescription medications to women seeking abortions, and often front extra costs for traveling out-of-state for abortions.

Email human rights reporter Nicole Ki at nki@argusleader.com or follow on Twitter at @_nicoleki.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: How will South Dakota’s abortion access change if Roe v. Wade falls?