Jessica Marchbank, State Programs Manager at All-Options Pregnancy Center, said that her organization is now funding 70 people seeking abortions each week, 10 times more than six months ago.
Marchbank said that the expansion in services offered was made possible by a surge in donations to the Hoosier Abortion Fund from abortion-choice advocates.
“We definitely have been receiving more donations since the Supreme Court leak,” Marchbank said. “It’s really good that we’ve been able to get more donations, because it’s allowed us to help a lot more people than we would have had the budget for beforehand.”
Indiana’s abortion ban goes into effect Sept. 15. Until then, Marchbank said All-Options will continue to help patients schedule abortions in the state.
“A lot of Hoosiers have already been going out of state for abortion care, the number is up to about 40 percent,” Marchbank said. “Of course, we will be careful to remain within the limits of the law, but we are not going to stop helping people access abortion care.”
Paying for an abortion is already expensive – around $900 for a first trimester surgical abortion in Indiana – but traveling for the procedure can significantly increase costs. All-Options only covers medical expenses, but Marchbank encouraged people seeking abortions to contact other funds that cover transportation and lodging expenses.
Marchbank believes anti-abortion legislators have underestimated the economic impact of a statewide ban.
“For all of time, people of privilege will be, and have been able, to access abortion care, because they have the means to travel or to bypass laws,” Marchbank said. “But people who are not privileged and are already marginalized are going to become more marginalized.”
Marchbank said that more support will be needed from the state to provide for new parents. All-Options provides free diapers, counseling and baby clothes to new parents, in addition to funding for abortion services.
