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'We're going to be flying people north': How some patients will travel due to Florida's 15-week abor
Sun SentinelNo Paywall
Florida’s new 15-week ban on abortions will likely mean more patients traveling out of state for the procedure — prompting a string of organizations to raise funds for trips hundreds of miles away, anywhere from North Carolina to New York.
Florida’s new abortion law took effect Friday, a day after a judge said he planned to sign an order as early as Tuesday that temporarily blocks it. The new law has led groups to start looking at other states to send patients who are more than 15 weeks pregnant and seeking an abortion.
“We’re working under the assumption that we’re going to be flying people north,” said Fran Sachs, president of the board at Emergency Medical Assistance, an abortion-funding nonprofit in West Palm Beach. “As always, the people that are going to be impacted the most are the people that don’t have the resources to be able to make this happen.”
The travel costs for each patient can mount into hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars, planners say. For example, it can be at least four days of lodging, food and time off work for a patient to head from Florida to North Carolina.
Florida’s new abortion law took effect Friday, a day after a judge said he planned to sign an order as early as Tuesday that temporarily blocks it. The new law has led groups to start looking at other states to send patients who are more than 15 weeks pregnant and seeking an abortion.
“We’re working under the assumption that we’re going to be flying people north,” said Fran Sachs, president of the board at Emergency Medical Assistance, an abortion-funding nonprofit in West Palm Beach. “As always, the people that are going to be impacted the most are the people that don’t have the resources to be able to make this happen.”
The travel costs for each patient can mount into hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars, planners say. For example, it can be at least four days of lodging, food and time off work for a patient to head from Florida to North Carolina.