All-Trimester Abortion Care Access and the Impact of Anti-Abortion Centers

An all-trimester abortion clinic prepares to open in Maryland, one of few nationally. An ob-gyn and nurse-midwife are gearing up to open an all-trimester abortion clinic near Washington, D.C. They aim to provide abortions later in pregnancy and serve women from states with bans.

Partners in Abortion Care: Expanding Third-Trimester Services

When it opens sometime after Labor Day, Partners in Abortion Care will be one of only a handful of clinics in the United States that offer abortions into the third trimester — in this case, up to 34 weeks' gestation. Dr. Diane Horvath, an obstetrician-gynecologist and co-owner of the upcoming clinic, explains that every time we draw a line and say 'no more abortions after this point,' someone's going to fall on the other side of that line, and they're going to be harmed.

The clinic expects to treat an influx of patients coming north from states with abortion bans enacted after the Supreme Court decision in June that overturned Roe v. Wade. Maryland has liberal abortion laws, and in July a law took effect that further expands abortion access. Now, along with physicians, qualified health providers including physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and midwives are allowed to perform abortions.

Rehomed Medical Infrastructure

The equipment in the moving truck has come full circle, as the Maryland clinic bought all of it second-hand from a clinic in Savannah, Ga., that shut down in June after 40 years providing abortions. It was one of many facilities that either shut down or stopped offering abortion services in states with bans. For context, Georgia now bans most abortions after about six weeks.

The Rise of Anti-Abortion Crisis Pregnancy Centers

While clinics like the one in Maryland expand access, the Napa Women’s Center is an anti-abortion center — sometimes known as a “crisis pregnancy center.” It’s one of approximately 3,000 such facilities across the country. Established by faith-based organizations, anti-abortion centers exist primarily to dissuade people from having abortions.

They often attract clients by opening in close proximity to abortion care clinics and by advertising reproductive health services, despite the vast majority operating without medical licensing. In Napa, it is no accident that an anti-abortion center operates right next to the city’s lone Planned Parenthood, in a state of uneasy tension, on one small city block. Behind those doors lie two vastly different worlds.

Facility Comparison Data

• Partners in Abortion Care (Maryland): Specializes in all-trimester abortion care up to 34 weeks' gestation with medical staff including obstetrician-gynecologists and nurse-midwives.
• Anti-Abortion Centers (Nationwide): Approximately 3,000 facilities established to dissuade people from having abortions.
• Napa Women’s Center (California): No medical professionals work at this facility; it offers free pregnancy tests and adoption agency referrals while distributing pamphlets with debunked claims.

For a pregnant person seeking health care, the choice of which one to enter comes with potentially life-changing consequences. None of the new state laws aimed at strengthening abortion rights can help a patient who’s standing on the sidewalk outside, deciding between the two, confused about what they’re seeing.