Why do so few Doctors do abortions?

I don't get this.

I'm old enough to remember when abortion was illegal, however it was well known that many family doctors did "something" for women "in trouble," or whatever, called (I think) a D&C. Even as a guy, I knew this from female relatives, friends, etc.

But since abortion became legal, the number of doctors providing the service seems to be very, very low.

This is fucked up.

It's a legal procedure. It's between a woman and her healthcare provider. There's NO REASON that ANYONE should know which doctors do or don't do abortions.

:wtf:

:shrug:

But I don't get why it's so easy to pinpoint doctors who provide the service (since there are apparently so few of them) when it's a LEGAL procedure that tons of doctors should be able to do.

Family doctors did it for years, and no one knew who they were.

but the terrorists don't care. Think back on the violence that's been visited upon women's clinics for decades. Think about Dr. Tiller having been shot in his arms in 1993.

They don't do it because they're scared.

The terrorists have won ....................

It's just hard to imagine this is 2009 and we're dealing with this shit

x(

its not that hard to imagine. The man might have stolen an election or two, but the election was close enough to steal.

He said that they had many opportunities to score and that the game never should have been so close that they could have been robbed of a victory by a bad call. The Gore/Bush election should never have been close enough for Bush to steal it considering the economy was good and we were not at war.

How many of Randall Terry's group have spent time in Gitmo or any prison? Are their phones tapped? Are they followed? Are they infiltrated? ARE THEY ON THE NO FLY LIST?

Maybe this nightmare will shine the bright light on Terry and his cohorts, show them for the terrorists that they are, and make people stop and think about what they've done.

When was the last time a pro-choice individual did something violent to any anti-choice individual or group? How many on our side are now in jail for committing crimes against someone anti-choice?

Yeah, right .............

It'd be interesting to get some answers

The terrorist now will protest your office, protest your home, protest your church, approach your children even if they are young to tell them you are killing babies, physically attack you, damage your property, and if that doesn't persuade you to stop the practice, well they just might shoot you while your ushering in church on a nice summer Sunday morning.

was it in NY state? - as he sat at his kitchen table, eating breakfast?

You have to remember, the leaders of these organization have de-humanized people on our side of the fence to a point that shooting someone in a church or while they are eating breakfast seems like an acceptable and justifiable action.

They are only going to get more violent. This goes for the group who is against Gay rights as well.

The more the Government gets involved with Health Care the more disclosure that has to happen.

The terrorists respect neither of these things. Their opinion is if the democratic majority supports a legal right that they don't agree with, they have a right to enforce the will of their opinion through violence, contrary to the constitution. Just like any form of tyranny really, and its something we need to resist.

It's certainly a risky business and luckily there are doctors who risk their lives to do it.

OB-GYNs have some of the highest insurance rates. GPs have lower ones, but they agree not to do certain procedures (reduced risk).

State regulations often require additional equipment and training that would not otherwise be found in a family practice. That makes it uneconomical.

There is significant social pressure not to perform them in smaller towns. For minimal return (if any) they take on a whole lot of social stigma. Its a fact of life.

Many doctors have not been trained to do them. They can opt out of it during medical school and residency. It avoids any moral ambiguity they might face later and it means they can not be forced to perform them should conscious clauses be rescinded.

For a while I lived in an area where not even the OBGYNs would perform abortions, even clearly therapeutic ones. Clean up after a miscarriage only. Nearest facility that would do them was 2.5 hours away in the next county. Their practice, their choice.

I also think you over estimate the number of doctors who performed abortions prior to legalization.

They can opt out of it during medical school and residency

Wow. Interesting.

All you had to do was know someone. Back alleys were for the poor. Get knocked up by my stepbrother, you got it taken care of in style in Gracie Square Hospital.

do you remember "therapeutic abortions"?

Oh, what a story I could tell .................

look closely at you...One for your wife, one for your mistress, and one for your daughter. Those done in an office did not count.

If anyone doesn't think that the rich and upper middle class fundamentalist leaders, would have no qualms about having their children have abortions to prevent family embarrassment, you only have to look at history.

The fact is Row made the practice available to the lower classes. This is what pissed off the fundies so much.

You make a good point

It was not commonplace and took $$$ if you wanted it done in the hospital. I knew several classmates who got them. Right after legalization many doctors did them but its clearly tapered off.

never even taught in medical school how to do abortions.

naturally ... ;)

Yglesias is right:

http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/05/a-kind-of-terrorism-that-works.php

"Random murder of civilians in order to coerce political concessions doesn’t have a great track-record. But direct action terrorist violence against abortion providers has, I think, proven to be a fairly successful tactic. Every time you murder a doctor, you create a disincentive for other medical professionals to provide these services. What’s more, you create a need for additional security at facilities around the country. In addition, the anti-abortion protestors who frequently gather near clinics are made to seem much more intimidating by the fact that the occurrence of these sorts of acts of violence.

In general, I think people tend to overestimate the efficacy of violence as a political tactic. But in this particular case, I think people tend to understate it. "

of us....We are losing our rights due to terrorism. How is this behavior not the same as the rest of the terrorists on this planet? Why are "eco-terrorists" being persecuted, but not these "hystero-terrorists"?

And to be honest, I can't say that I blame the doctors whom are too afraid to perform the procedure.

There was some half-hearted federal prosecution during Clinton's administration, but below the federal level, nothing.

Terrorism works.

have been on the anti-choice terrorist side, at least to the point of allowing them the leeway to operate. Tiller himself was shot, his clinic was bombed, and there were "protestors" at his clinic and his home, as well as his church, with minimal legal action to control them. These people get the message that they are OK with violating the law, and will always push to take the extra step in their aggressive behavior. They have NO respect for any belief but their own, and they think they are keeping America safe from the wrath of god by hating and killing people.

mark