The Roe V Wade decision was a significant milestone in American history in 1973. It provided women with a right to abortion; an important factor in modern women’s healthcare. The overturning of that decision on June 24, 2022, proved again to be another significant day in American history. So, what does the overturning of this landmark decision mean for the modern woman, and more specifically, how does this affect families?
Because America is a two-party political system, how laws are interpreted varies greatly. Each state and its people lean different ways on these issues, and while some states have lenient abortion laws, others have strict ones. Take Texas, for instance.
Texas is notorious for having some of the strictest abortion laws and one of the worst healthcare systems in the nation. It is important to consider what life will look like for women post-roe in a state where conditions are already shaky for them.
Texas accounts for 10% of all births in the U.S. This means that maternal health and well-being in Texas has national consequences. The rate of maternal mortality and infant mortality in Texas is actually lower than commonly thought, but certain factors at the community level like: social, environmental, and economic disparities put Texas greatly behind other states across the nation in terms of maternal health and wellness. The strict abortion laws in Texas could potentially corner women into having a baby they either do not want or can’t have for various reasons, in which case expanding Medicare and Medicaid options is essential.
Things like smoking, obesity, and lack of access to healthcare all play a significant role in maternal mortality and infant mortality. If left unaddressed, this could become a huge problem for Texas potentially making those lower mortality rates swell with time.
For Texans under the age of 65 and those not eligible for Medicare, the percentage of uninsured persons is currently at 20.8%, putting 1 in 5 Texans without healthcare. These are some of the worst numbers across the nation. In 2020, about 24.0% of women were uninsured in Texas. Taking into account factors like age, race, and income, these numbers increase across different zip-codes.
The biggest issue Texas faces at the moment is the high rate of uninsured persons like: Hispanic and non-Hispanic black women, immigrant women living in the U.S. without citizenship, pregnant and postpartum women, and younger women.
These groups face the challenges of navigating motherhood and securing childcare without security. It is proven that maternal mortality and infant mortality is greatly linked to a lack of access to medical care. With Texas unwilling to expand its Medicare and Medicaid programs, can it sustain the fall-back from a post-roe world? Meeting this new, rising demand for medical care expansion is going to be a huge challenge for Texas. The health of the mother plays an important role in the stability and general health of the family. Will Texas step-up to the plate?