Maine Family Planning to offer telemedicine abortions

[jpak]

Source: Bangor Daily News

Women throughout Maine will have greater access to abortions under a reproductive health group’s plan to connect them with doctors over video conference.

Patients who typically must drive long distances for the procedure may now arrange for an abortion via telemedicine at one of Maine Family Planning’s 17 centers throughout the state, the organization announced Monday.

The move makes Maine one of just three states, along with Iowa and Minnesota, where abortion services through telemedicine are broadly available, according to Maine Family Planning.

The improved access contrasts starkly with much of the rest of the country, the group said. Restrictions on abortions have proliferated in other states, including Texas, which once permitted telemedicine abortions but has since banned them and passed additional legal limits leading to the closure of dozens of clinics.

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Read more: http://bangordailynews.com/2016/02/29/health/maine-family-planning-to-offer-telemedicine-abortions/

[LittleGirl]

1. That is a brilliant

idea that should go nationwide.

[Helen Borg]

2. Now the domestic Taliban bigots will try to ban the internet!

[LittleGirl]

4. Yup. eom

[Liberal_in_LA]

5. And require women to get permission from husband to use phone

[eggplant]

3. Excellent.

This is wonderful news.

[littlemissmartypants]

6. Reality is it's banned in 18 states already.

http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/spibs/spib_MA.pdf

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

7. I read this too.

I'm glad to hear we are doing good things like this in Maine. You'd think this would make LePage crazy. Maybe he has given up.

[lindysalsagal]

8. Sounds appropriate. 2 medical professionals and home care.

Lot easier to fund local nurse practitioners in rural areas.

[Ruby the Liberal]

9. This is a strange question, but how does that even work?

[okasha]

10. My question, too.

[magical thyme]

11. it's explained right in the article

in a nutshell, it's a drug-induced abortion and is limited to w/in 70 days of last period. Woman gets ultrasound, etc. at local health clinic for screening. Meets with the doctor by video conference. Doctor prescribes the drugs (2 of them). Woman takes the drugs with doctor observing, again by video conference. There are only 3 abortion clinics in Maine, all spread out, so for very rural people it's very difficult otherwise.

[Ruby the Liberal]

12. I had no idea that was even possible.

Thanks for explaining!

[jmowreader]

13. It's not surgical abortion, if that's what you're thinking

They are building "satellite clinics" that have everything you need for a medical abortion clinic EXCEPT for a doctor. They have a doctor, at a central location. The doctor consults with patients and gives the go-ahead for the abortion via a two-way video link. Everything at the patients' end is performed by RNs and technicians.

There are eighteen states that have banned telehealth abortions, most before anyone had ever considered setting up a telehealth abortion system.

[Ruby the Liberal]

14. Thank you

Never heard of this before. I guess something to be grateful about here in the NE while we are SO behind in so many other areas.