PHOENIX — Less than three weeks after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the landscape of care for potential mothers has changed drastically in Arizona.
"Instantaneously," Dr. Paul Isaacson, a co-owner of Family Planning Associates Medical Group, said.
Isaacson's Phoenix-based practice provided abortions to women in Arizona for the last 24 years. The practice stopped with the Supreme Court ruling.
“It’s sad to see it empty like this,” Dr. Issacson said. "It’s quite the adjustment."
Empty shelves sit where medical records used to be, while boxes have replaced patients.
Isaacson said the clinic used to see around 40 to 50 people on a normal day. Over the last few weeks, that number has dwindled to about a half dozen patients daily.
“It’s all packed up, all the services are packed up,” Dr. Elanor Stanley, who co-owns the clinic, said.
The clinic currently is running a GoFundMe to help pay for employees and provide non-abortion and follow-up care to the women who need it.
“There are funds to maintain our staff for one more pay period,” Isaacson said.
While some clinics are closing, others get more calls.
“There has been a noticeable uptick in what services we provide,” Josh Chumley, Chief Advancement Officer at Choices Arizona, said.
Choices is a pro-life pregnancy center that has existed in the Valley for decades. The center officers free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, and counseling against abortion, among other services.
“Demand continues to increase, and as such a time as this, we are here to serve,” Chumley said.
To help meet the demand, Choices plans to expand its operating hours.
“We are going to open up all nights and Saturdays come mid-august,” Chumley said.
“With respect to women seeking abortions, there are no resources in Arizona.” Dr. Stanley said.
Doctors Isaacson and Stanley believe the current legal care falls short. They said abortions will still happen. Some women with the monetary resources means will go out of state. Those who cannot afford the trip will need to rely on charity or face the new reality of what choices they can make.
“We have gone from a state where choice is available to where forced pregnancy is now the baseline of care,” Stanley said.
"We do know people deserve better, and babies deserve a chance," Chumley said.
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: Clínicas de Arizona cierran mientras que otras ven aumentos en las llamadas después de anular Roe vs. Wade
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