Planned Parenthood will continue providing abortion care in Iowa after law takes effect

Planned Parenthood will continue to provide some abortion care to Iowans after the state's strict abortion ban takes effect while also helping patients access care in nearby states with fewer restrictions.

The Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday that the state's so-called "fetal heartbeat" abortion law can take effect, which bans nearly all abortions after a doctor can detect cardiac activity in an embryo. That's usually around the sixth week of pregnancy, before most women know they are pregnant.

The law contains narrow exceptions for rape, incest, fatal fetal abnormalities or medical emergencies that endanger the life of the mother. Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the law in July 2023.

More: What Kim Reynolds, Democrats are saying about the Iowa Supreme Court abortion ban ruling:

The six-week ban is expected to go into effect in about three weeks after the district court formally receives the Supreme Court's order.

"Today's decision marks a dark moment in Iowa's history. Iowans' freedom to control their bodies and their futures has been destroyed," Ruth Richardson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States, said at a virtual news conference Friday. "Politicians and the courts have successfully flexed their newfound power with the overturning of (Roe v. Wade) to take away bodily autonomy."

But Richardson said Planned Parenthood isn't going anywhere: The organization will continue to provide abortion care in Iowa if no cardiac activity is detected. Planned Parenthood "also stands ready to connect Iowans with the essential health care they so desperately need, even if that means traveling out of state," she said.

Planned Parenthood North Central States' patient navigator program has helped more than 4,000 patients access abortion care since the end of Roe in 2022, the majority of them from Iowa, Richardson said.

"They will help Iowans access essential health care they so desperately need during this intense moment of manufactured chaos and confusion," she said.

While anytime a patient has to travel across state lines for care is "devastating," she said, North Central States also has been making long-term investments to provide regional options to patients who face bans, including facilities in Omaha, Nebraska, and Mankato, Minnesota. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz posted on X that "Minnesota is and will remain a safe haven for reproductive freedom" for Iowans seeking care.

"This does not change our commitment to providing care in Iowa," Richardson said. "We will continue to provide expert, compassionate family planning services, including annual exams, birth control, STI testing and treatment and cancer screenings."

Iowa City's Emma Goldman Clinic, in a Friday statement, also said the clinic would continue to provide abortion care to the extent possible when there is no cardiac activity.

More: How Iowa's abortion laws have changed over the decades leading to Friday's ruling

Asked if Planned Parenthood or Emma Goldman would provide abortion care when there is cardiac activity under the law's exceptions, both Richardson and Francine Thompson, executive director of Emma Goldman Clinic, said they would follow the law.

Richardson said Iowa's abortion ban is going to be catastrophic for the health, safety and lives of too many people, whether they are forced to carry a pregnancy against their will, seek abortion outside the health care system or bear the financial burden of traveling far away for care — including Black, Latinx and indigenous people, young people, LGBTQ people and those with low incomes or who live in rural areas.

"Today's ruling is a staggering blow to Iowans and it will take years to undo the health impacts that are going to be around for generations to come," she said.

Thompson said at the news conference that her three granddaughters now have less reproductive access than she did growing up.

"The Emma Goldman Clinic remains committed to helping connect Iowans with the essential life-saving health care they need and deserve," she said. "The courts and politicians have no place in our exam rooms, no place in our bedrooms, or around our kitchen tables or wherever we make personal family decisions. Today marks a dark day in our state's history that robs Iowans of their fundamental right to make what should be fully informed, private medical decisions."

More: Iowa has a shortage of OB-GYN doctors. The new abortion ban could make that worse.

Emma Goldman also will continue to provide care that includes cervical cancer screenings, gender-affirming care, wellness and preventive visits, she said.

"We want our clients to know that we are here ready to help them navigate the chaos and confusion this ban will bring," Thompson said. "We'll continue to push back against those who feel the need to promote the erasure of bodily autonomy."

Reynolds and Iowa Attorney General Bird were among Republicans who quickly issued statements praising Friday's ruling.

“There is no right more sacred than life, and nothing more worthy of our strongest defense than the innocent unborn," Reynolds said. "... Families are the cornerstone of society, and it’s what will keep the foundation of our state and country strong for generations to come.”

Chris Higgins covers the northern and eastern suburbs for the Register. Reach him at [email protected] or 515-423-5146 and follow him on Twitter @chris_higgins_.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Planned Parenthood to provide abortion care in Iowa under ban's limits