| Popis: |
Provision of medication abortion in student health centers (SHC) is safe and effective, but only two states require public SHCs to provide such services. Washington state does not require medication abortion in public SHCs, yet abortion demand is greater and out-of-state patients have increased following the Dobbs decision. Here, we estimate demand for medication abortion and describe barriers to care among Washington public university students. Using publicly available data, we estimated that students at the 11 Washington public universities obtained between 404 and 549 medication abortions annually. Students must travel an average of 16 miles (range:1-78) or 73 minutes via public transit (range:22-284) round trip to the nearest abortion-providing facility. Average wait time for the first available appointment was 10 days (range:4-14), and average cost was $711. Public universities can play an integral role in expanding abortion access post-Dobbs by providing medication abortion, effectively reducing barriers to care for students. |
