(NewsNation) — Around 6.7 million Latinas, accounting for 43% of Latinas aged 15-49, reside in states with abortion bans, making them the largest affected group among women of color, according to a report by the National Partnership for Women & Families and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice.
In 26 states, nearly half of all Latinas are already mothers, with 852,800 of them having children younger than 3. When mothers cannot access abortion care, it adversely affects the economic well-being and development of their existing children, according to a study.
Latinas in Florida, Texas and Arizona constitute a significant portion of Latinas in states with abortion bans, according to the analysis.
In Texas, 2.9 million Latinas of reproductive age face restrictions, with 1.4 million being mothers and 1.3 million facing economic insecurity.
More than 3 million Latinas in these states face economic insecurity. Low-income women struggle due to the inability to afford travel for abortion care. Denial of abortion care often pushes them deeper into poverty, according to this report.
Florida, with 1.4 million Latinas of reproductive age, enforces laws that restrict most abortions after 15 weeks, affecting 594,600 mothers and 558,000 economically insecure Latinas.
Arizona, home to 585,600 Latinas of reproductive age, has various abortion bans, including a near-total ban that temporarily blocked abortion after 15 weeks.
Nearly half of Latina veterans live in states with abortion bans, despite efforts made by U.S. Departments of Veterans Affairs to expand access. Not all veterans are eligible for or use VA health care.
And more than 1 million Latinas in these states may not speak English well, posing significant obstacles to accessing culturally sensitive abortion care, Bloomberg reported.
