Health

LA: a haven for fetuses

by Walter Pierce

But for babies, women and children, eh, not so much.

Louisiana is among a group of states with 10 or more abortion restrictions that score near the bottom for policies that support the health and wellbeing of women and children, according to a report released this week by Ibis Reproductive Health and the Center for Reproductive Rights.

The study found that a state's performances on measures of women and child health and wellbeing is generally inversely proportional to the number of abortion restrictions such as mandatory ultrasounds, waiting periods and other roadblocks to abortion access. Those states, Louisiana included, have higher rates of infant/child/maternal mortality, teen births, obesity, and women and children lacking health insurance.

Conversely, states with the fewest restrictions also tend to perform well in ensuring the health and wellbeing of women and children. For example, Vermont, with no abortion restrictions, and New Hampshire (two) score the highest in overall indicators of women/children health and wellbeing. Mississippi and Oklahoma, with 14 restrictions each, are among the low scorers.

Read more here.