Manitoba opens doors for North Dakotans to access abortion services

In the wake of the recent abortion bans in North Dakota, Manitoba is offering abortion services to any North Dakotan wishing to travel to the province to receive care.

On Monday, the governor of North Dakota adopted one of the strictest anti-abortion laws in the U.S., banning the procedure throughout pregnancy, with slim exceptions up to six weeks and only in cases of rape, incest, or a medical emergency.

“They’ve been very anti-choice for years and they’ve been just waiting for Roe v. Wade to be overturned, so I’m not shocked,” said Paige Mason with the Abortion Rights Coalition of Canada.

FILE – A patient prepares to take the first of two combination pills, mifepristone, for a medication abortion during a visit to a clinic in Kansas City, Kan., on Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2022. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

Kemlin Nembhard with the Women’s Health Clinic in Winnipeg says this ruling is extremely disappointing.

“I worry about what options people will have to turn to in North Dakota, now that they’ve restricted it so much,” said Nembhard.

The Manitoba government is now allowing all residents and non-residents to access abortion services in the province. A government spokesperson tells CityNews that costs will have to be either out of pocket or reimbursed through private insurance claims.

RELATED:

• Video of Justin Trudeau and ‘confused’ PPC supporter shared widely online
• Abortion laws spark profound changes in other medical care
• What Roe v. Wade means for Canada

FILE – Bottles of the drug misoprostol sit on a table at the West Alabama Women’s Center, March 15, 2022, in Tuscaloosa, Ala. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed, File)

Nembhard says the Women’s Health Clinic in Winnipeg performs 25-30 per cent more abortions than they are funded for every year, making it tough to help everyone in need.

“We have to turn people away because our waitlist is too long, and we won’t be able to see them in the time that we can provide care. We only go up to 16 weeks. That means they have to go to the hospital and the hospital only goes up to 19 weeks,” explained Nembhard.

Mason says it’s vital to provide these services to those who need them, but says Manitobans have enough trouble accessing care.

“We only have two places that offer surgical abortions, and they are in Winnipeg and Brandon, so our province is struggling with access and seeing people coming from North Dakota is only going to further strain our resources and health care system,” said Mason.

FILE – Boxes of the drug mifepristone sit on a shelf at the West Alabama Women’s Center in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed, File)

Thomas Linner with the Manitoba Health Coalition says the province needs to provide more funding to abortion services and should look at cutting ties with North Dakota.

“What is the message we are sending to the people in the United States when we push aside these human rights violations to transgender people and to those seeking abortion services. I don’t think it’s right and I think we need to take a look at those services again,” stated Linner.

Nembhard wants to see Canada step up and take care of its own first. “Across the country, we need to actually have abortion care better funded just across the board.”