Missouri doctors say they're tired of seeing people suffer because of the state's abortion ban

Over 800 medical professionals in Missouri are endorsing Amendment 3, a ballot initiative upheld that would reverse the state’s near-total abortion ban. 

“Politicians are not more qualified than doctors to help our patients make decisions around their reproductive health care,” Dr. Betsy Wickstrom, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist in Kansas City, said at a press conference on Monday. “I think we can all agree that politicians should not have a say in our exam rooms. Voting yes on Amendment 3 will prevent that."

Also known as the “Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative,” Amendment 3 would change Missouri’s constitution to explicitly protect “reproductive freedom," defined as "the right to make and carry out decisions about all matters relating to reproductive health care.”

“The right to reproductive freedom shall not be denied, interfered with, delayed or otherwise restricted,” the measure reads. It also states that the state government “shall not discriminate against persons providing or obtaining reproductive healthcare.”

The initiative was first introduced by Missourians for Constitutional Freedom and has faced a long and arduous path to the ballot. After gathering nearly 380,000 signatures from Missourians (constitutional amendment initiatives need a minimum of 171,592 to be included on the ballot), Amendment 3 was certified by Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft in early August.

Just days later. however, two Republican lawmakers sued Ashcroft for certifying the amendment, marking the first of several last-ditch attempts to block Amendment 3.

They nearly succeeded. In early September, a Cole County judge ruled the amendment violated state law because it failed to list what specific laws would be repealed if it passed, prompting Ashcroft to reverse his original decision and decertify Amendment 3. The decertification sparked outrage among reproductive rights advocates across the state. 

The case was ultimately sent to Missouri Supreme Court, which ruled earlier this month that Amendment 3 should be included on the ballot in November after all.

In 2022, Missouri enacted a near-total abortion ban. All abortions are illegal in the state, except in cases of medical emergency when there is a risk of “irreversible physical impairment of a major bodily function,” a broad definition that has left both patients and doctors in limbo. 

“Any person who knowingly performs or induces an abortion of an unborn child in violation of this subsection shall be guilty of a class B felony, as well as subject to suspension or revocation of his or her professional license,” Missouri’s abortion law reads. 

Over the last two years, Wickstrom has seen many patients turned away from emergency rooms and forced to travel out of state to get the care they need. She’s witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of the abortion ban on her patients, some of whom have heart disease and are at risk for complicated pregnancies. Even if a patient were “tugging for breath, literally suffocating in my exam room” and needed to terminate their pregnancy, by law she couldn’t help them, she explained. 

“Can I do anything about that here in Missouri? No, these are people that have to find their way out of state to get life-saving care,” Wickstrom said.

It’s ultimately contributing to people being concerned about starting a family and reconsidering the risks of being pregnant in the state, she said, explaining that patients often come to her wondering if it's even safe to have a baby in Missouri. They're nervous that they won’t be able to get the care they need if there’s a complication. 

“Why are we making people choose between their own lives and continuing a pregnancy in a forced birth situation?”

​​It’s the reality for many patients and doctors in red states across the country. Abortion bans have resulted in a mass exodus of obstetricians that’s left thousands of pregnant people without access to care. In Idaho, 22% of practicing obstetricians have left the state since its abortion ban took effect, according to a report by the Iowa Coalition for Safe Health Care. Months after Texas imposed its six-week abortion ban, applications to Texas-based OGBYN residencies dropped by 10.4%. 

Nationally, 5.5 million women live in counties “with no or limited access to maternity care services,” according to a recent survey by March of Dimes.

“That's the reality when doctors can be jailed and lose their medical license just for providing routine, safe medical care,” Dr. Jennifer Smith, an OBGYN in St. Louis, said at Monday’s press conference. 

That’s exactly why ballot initiatives like Amendment 3 are so important, supporters argue.

With the certification of Amendment 3, Missouri will be the 11th state to vote on a reproductive rights measure in November. To pass, the initiative will need 50% of the vote. 

“We have a chance to protect patients’ freedom, health and lives,” Smith said. “That's why doctors like us are speaking out on behalf of our patients, our fellow medical professionals and all Missourians, we are saying yes on amendment three.”