An Ohio doctor who specializes in child abuse cases made a difficult call to a colleague in Indiana last week: the doctor had a pregnant 10-year-old girl in the office who needed an abortion but the state’s abortion ban after six weeks had just gone into effect, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
The problem: the girl was impregnated six weeks and three days before. No doctor in Ohio could provide the girl with an abortion, so she needed to go to Indiana for the procedure. Regardless of the fact that this 10-year-old girl was abused, in the view of Ohio’s leaders, she was old enough to parent an infant.
Abortion providers in Indiana report that they’re getting scores of inquiries from patients in Ohio and Kentucky, which also passed a ban after six weeks. With its conservative legislature, pundits foresee Indiana passing a similarly restrictive law, which means patients like this 10-year-old girl will have to travel even farther.