Patients Must Seek Pharmacists, Other Providers For Reproductive Health as Abortion Clinics Close

With abortion-providing clinics being a pillar of contraceptive care in the US, as more and more close across the country, patients will need to seek other providers, such as pharmacists, for reproductive health services. More research is needed to understand the impacts of abortion clinics closing following the pivotal Dobbs decision, according to a study published in Women’s Health Issues.¹

“While historical state-level restrictions on abortion provision created barriers to abortion care before the June 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision that struck down the constitutional right to abortion, the number of abortion-providing clinics in the US fell precipitously after the Dobbs decision,” wrote the authors of the study. “State legislation restricting abortion, followed by abortion clinic closure, has outpaced legislation expanding abortion access.”

As a majority of the general public is aware, the Dobbs Supreme Court decision was a landmark case stripping away women’s constitutional right to an abortion that was once upheld by the Roe vs. Wade decision of 1973. Since the Dobbs decision in 2022, immense challenges and hurdles have been put in place for women seeking an abortion and various contraceptive care services.²

Researchers explored articles focused on contraceptive care, STI testing and/or treatment, or cervical cancer prevention and/or screening to abortion access, demand, or provision. | image credit: megaflopp / stock.adobe.com

READ MORE: OTC Birth Control Improves Access to Contraception for Patients With Structural Barriers

Researchers note that the Dobbs decision had a significant impact on public health services that is currently being observed as experts continue to tackle issues of abortion and the laws that surround it. With abortion laws now being handled by states and total abortion bans in 14 of the 50 US states, researchers observed a 5% decrease in clinics providing abortion care between 2020 and March 2024. On the other hand, there was a 3% increase in clinics among states where abortion was not fully banned.³

“Variation in health policies over time and by state may have resulted in differential changes in provision of contraceptive care, [sexually transmitted infection] (STI) testing and treatment, and cervical cancer prevention and screening at the time of abortion or by abortion-providing clinics,” wrote the authors of the study.¹ “Thus, we conducted a scoping review to first understand the breadth of routine reproductive health care provided at the time of abortion or in clinics that provide abortion. Second, we sought to understand how various health policies have created barriers or facilitated delivery of comprehensive reproductive health care.”

In their scoping review, researchers explored articles following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines for scoping reviews. Articles were only eligible for the analysis if they focused on contraceptive care, STI testing and treatment, or cervical cancer prevention and screening to abortion access, demand, or provision.

Within each article studied, researchers conducted a deeper dive into the discussion of health policy associated with reproductive health care. Searching for reproductive and contraceptive care’s relationship with health policy among these articles allowed for the researchers to identify policy drivers for reproductive care provisions.

After assessing inclusion criteria, the final analysis comprised a total of 74 articles. While some explored multiple areas, 65 focused on contraceptive care, 7 on STI testing and treatment, and 2 on cervical cancer screening and prevention.

“Findings from this scoping review suggest contraceptive care, STI testing and treatment, and cervical cancer prevention and screening are acceptable to patients seeking abortion and that abortion-providing clinics are a point of access for these services,” they continued.¹ “Despite this, abortion-providing clinics face many barriers to providing preventive reproductive health services with abortion care, including limitations of insurance coverage of abortion and care provided at the time of abortion, reimbursement issues when insurance is billed, and facility capacity to provide services at the time of abortion.”

Whether it be improvements needed on health care infrastructure or a lack of legislative support for reproductive care services, the care once offered by abortion-providing clinics has been notably exacerbated since the Dobbs decision. While these clinics have grown increasingly difficult to operate because of policy sentiments across various US states, researchers of the current study highlighted their importance to public health.

As abortion-related care and reproductive health services decline in the US, opportunities for providers like pharmacists may arise, giving them the chance to fill in gaps of contraceptive care. Pharmacists’ prescriptive and overall medical authority regarding reproductive care varies by state. However, from counseling patients on medication abortions to providing education on all things reproductive health, pharmacists have long been positioned as providers ready to tackle the burden of declining contraceptive care services.⁴

“More research is needed to examine the public health impact of clinic closures after Dobbs,” concluded the authors of the study.¹ “Attention should be paid to changing trends in contraceptive use, STI rates, and cervical cancer in regions where many abortion-providing clinics have closed, thus reducing access to reproductive health services.”

READ MORE: Women’s Health Resource Center

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REFERENCES

1. Mahoney KM, Bravo L, McAllister A, et al. Reproductive health services in abortion-providing clinics: a scoping review of provision and policy contexts. WHI. September 2, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2025.07.007

2. Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022). National Constitution Center. 2022. Accessed September 12, 2025. https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/supreme-court-case-library/dobbs-v-jackson-womens-health-organization

3. Jones RK, Gibson C, Philbin J. The number of brick-and-mortar abortion clinics drops, as US abortion rate rises: New data underscore the need for policies that support providers. Guttmacher. June 2024. Accessed September 12, 2025. https://www.guttmacher.org/report/abortion-clinics-united-states-2020-2024.

4. Meredith AH. Pharmacists increasing access to reproductive health care. APhA. December 1, 2022. Accessed September 12, 2025. https://www.pharmacist.com/Blogs/CEO-Blog/pharmacists-increasing-access-to-reproductive-health-care