In the Legal Battle over Abortion, Women's Health Care Must Come First

Statement of Dr. Wayne Goldner
Plaintiff, Ayotte v. Planned Parenthood of Northern New England et al.

I am a board certified ob-gyn and have practiced obstetrics and gynecology for more than 20 years. I provide a full range of reproductive health services, including prenatal care, delivery of newborns, prevention and screening of gynecological and breast cancers, treatment for infertility and sexually transmitted infections, and abortions. I brought this legal challenge to New Hampshire's law restricting teenagers' access to abortion because it poses a serious threat to women's health.

The law in question would prevent New Hampshire doctors like myself from performing an abortion for a teenager under the age of 18 until 48 hours after a parent has been notified. This law makes no exception for circumstances in which a young woman needs an emergency abortion to protect her health. Unfortunately, there are many conditions that can arise during pregnancy that require an immediate abortion. Without the proper care, a teen could face lifelong liver or kidney dysfunction, infertility, or chronic pain. Even with these dire consequences, the New Hampshire law at issue requires me to wait two days to perform an urgently needed abortion if I cannot find one of the teen's parents to sign a statement that he or she has been notified.

I was relieved when two lower courts struck down this law. Now that the case is before the U.S. Supreme Court, the stakes are even greater. A decision in Ayotte could reach far beyond teens in New Hampshire, affecting women's access to all abortion care throughout the country.

What happens if the Court decides that New Hampshire's law and any other abortion restriction does not require a medical emergency exception and instead that lawmakers can require women facing serious health emergencies to go to court and seek an exception from the law to obtain an urgently needed abortion? My job is to care for my patients to the best of my ability. In an emergency, I need to be able to go to the hospital, not a courthouse. For my patients' sake and for women and their doctors across the country, I am hopeful that the Court will recognize that the law must put women's health concerns first, before any legal or political battle over abortion rights.