This article is a component of a bigger collection titled “The End Of Roe.” Head right here to learn extra.
If states insist on limiting reproductive rights, the least they might do is present help for these dad and mom and their new youngsters.
But they aren’t actually doing that.
HuffPost study 23 states which can be set to limit or ban abortion if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade this summer season, because it seems poised to do. We checked out whether or not they supply advantages comparable to paid household depart, common pre-Okay, tax credit geared toward serving to households and medical help.
The 23 states usually didn’t rating effectively. Three states ― Mississippi, South Dakota and Wyoming ― didn’t supply any of the seven advantages we examined. Louisiana, Oklahoma and West Virginia scored one of the best, with 4 advantages. In comparability, for instance, California and New York ― each states with abortion protections on the books ― present each single one of many advantages.
“In the absence of federal action, overturning Roe will be especially devastating in the states poised to ban abortion,” stated Osub Ahmed, affiliate director of ladies’s well being and rights on the Center for American Progress. “Most of these states have failed to develop policies or invest in programs that support mothers and their families, setting up women forced to continue a pregnancy for failure.”
In addition to the metrics examined by HuffPost, Ahmed famous that fewer 10 of those states require a minimal wage past the federal minimal of $7.25 an hour.
A take a look at among the measures we used:
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Paid Family Leave: Zero of the 23 states set to limit abortion supply paid household depart. The United States is likely one of the few international locations on the earth that doesn’t supply this profit. While there’s a federal legislation that gives as much as 12 weeks off of labor to have a child, it is unpaid time. It additionally applies solely to firms with 50 or more employees, and to staff who’ve been employed there for a full 12 months.
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Medicaid Expansion: The Medicaid program pays for about 4 in 10 births within the United States, in line with the Kaiser Family Foundation. The Affordable Care Act dramatically expanded who qualifies for Medicaid protection, bringing medical health insurance to extra folks. But 12 states didn’t settle for the growth ― together with 10 which can be set to limit abortion rights.
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Full Or Mostly Universal Pre-Okay: Five states in our group supply full or largely common pre-Okay ― a profit obtainable in just 11 states and the District of Columbia, in line with the National Institute for Early Education Research. Those states serve not less than 70% of their 4-year-old inhabitants or have dedicated to the objective of common pre-Okay.
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State Earned Income Tax Credit: The federal earned earnings tax credit score gives low- and middle-income taxpayers a refundable credit score primarily based on earnings, marital standing, variety of youngsters and different measurements. More than half of states additionally supply a state EITC, together with 9 of the 23 states set to limit abortion. (Utah and Missouri are included on this listing, though they received’t go into impact till 2023, in line with the Urban Institute.)
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State Child Tax Credit: The common federal youngster tax credit score gives tax reduction to households primarily based on their variety of youngsters. Only Oklahoma and Idaho offer a state child tax credit, in line with the National Conference of State Legislatures, though not like the federal one, it’s nonrefundable.
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Pregnant Workers Protections: Nine states on this listing have legal guidelines requiring some employers to supply reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees, comparable to transferring them to a unique place that’s much less hazardous.
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12-Month Medicaid Postpartum Extension: Federal legislation requires Medicaid protection for pregnancy-related bills up to 60 days postpartum. The Affordable Care Act additionally gave states the choice to increase that protection for as much as 12 months. Ten states that plan to limit abortion rights have, or are planning to, implement this extension.
Of course, the advantages listed below are only a small slice of what’s wanted to assist households ― and assist is required lengthy after the kids are infants and toddlers.
But proper now, for a lot of GOP politicians, the main target isn’t even on serving to dad and mom and infants.
