A recently released report details an unfolding “constitutional, human rights, public health, and medical ethics crisis” in Louisiana, caused by the state’s abortion ban.

“Clinicians across the state time and again underscored the impossibility of prioritizing patient care under the state’s draconian laws and the many harms this untenable situation results in for pregnant Louisianans,” the report says.

Under Louisiana’s current abortion ban, health care providers risk civil and criminal penalties if found in violation of the law. The report, “Criminalized Care: How Louisiana’s Abortion Bans Endanger Patients and Clinicians” found “alarming” problems with pregnancy care after the enactment of the abortion ban. The report found that after the enactment of Louisiana’s abortion ban, pregnant people in the state have undergone hazardous and needless surgeries, been refused timely care for miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies, and have been forced to postpone abortions until their lives are endangered.

“This anonymized fact-finding and research shows how the bans’ narrow and ill-defined exceptions create confusion, uncertainty, and fear for both pregnant patients and clinicians, who face significant professional, civil, and criminal penalties for providing the patient-centered and compassionate care they were trained for and could legally offer........

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