Interesting LA Times Article on New Mexico's Rising Profile in the Abortion Wars

While assembling my Albuquerque filming locations page, I recall watching a recent movie about the Center for Reproductive Health. The very best to them:

The court’s ruling is drawing this state deeper into a intensifying culture war that has shaped American politics and challenged a woman’s right to abortion for decades. As many states, most controlled by Republican legislatures, have restricted access over the years, New Mexico and others, including Colorado and Illinois, have become safe if at times tense havens for those seeking to end their pregnancies.

New Mexico is something of an anomaly: 49% Hispanic and Latino, largely rural, traditionally Catholic and yet reliably blue, including a friendliness toward LGBTQ communities. The state has no gestational limits or waiting periods for abortions, and it does not require parental consent for minors who want to undergo the procedure. Many New Mexican women who seek abortions travel from their small towns to urban centers, where they will now compete with rising numbers of women from out of state. 

More than 5,800 abortions were provided in New Mexico in 2020, the most recent year available, an increase of 32% from 2019. Given the 2021 passage in the adjacent state of Texas of Senate Bill 8, known as the Texas Heartbeat Act, and the Supreme Court ruling, experts estimate the state’s figures for 2021 and 2022 to increase wildly. The influx will challenge the state’s capacity to meet demand.