Women's Med Center located in Kettering has been in operation for several years. On Tuesday, a representative for the clinic — who asked not to be named as a security precaution — confirmed Women's Med will close September 15th if Indiana’s abortion ban is enforced.
In a statement, Kellie Copeland, the executive director of Ohio’s Pro-Choice, said the possible closure is a loss for everyone in West Central Ohio.
“Whether a person needs an abortion because it endangers their health, or their birth control failed, no one should be forced to give birth because they cannot access the health care they need in their community.” Copeland said.
In a separate statement, Dayton's Right to Life called the closing of the clinic a goal of the organization since it opened back in 1973.
"We will continue to pray for the healing of this community as we move towards an abortion-free Miami Valley." An official of the organization said.
Earlier in August, Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb signed a near total ban on abortions in that state. The ban strip licenses from facilities that currently perform abortions that are not hospitals, it does have some exceptions for cases of rape or incest or if a woman's life is at risk.
Meanwhile, Ohio outlawed abortion after six weeks from the start of a pregnancy back June after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Since then, Women’s Med has been offering pre-abortion services to its patients and then sending them to their sister location in Indianapolis for the procedure.
If abortion is outlawed in Indiana, Women’s Med stated it no longer makes sense for the clinic to stay open in Ohio.
To stop this from happening, Women’s Med Center joined several other abortion providers in a lawsuit in Indiana on Tuesday. The suit argues the abortion ban violates the Indiana Constitution and the states equal privileges protections.
“Unlike Indiana politicians, our physicians are dedicated to the welfare of our patients, meeting them where they are with compassion and respect,” The Women’s Med representative said in a statement. “Without a court order, we will no longer be able to provide this essential care to our patients. That is simply unacceptable.”
The representative for Women’s Med said if an injunction is granted the clinics will stay open although there’s no telling if it might be granted before the September 15th enforcement of the ban in Indiana.
If the the ban does get enforce, the closest clinics to the Miami Valley offering an abortion will be in Illinois or Michigan.
Alejandro Figueroa is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms.
