Kentucky residents must travel out of state for abortion. Here’s how far they’ll have to go

As nearly all abortions will remain illegal in the commonwealth following the Kentucky Supreme Court’s decision Thursday, Lexington residents seeking reproductive health care will have to travel at least 75 miles to have the procedure.

Abortion has been illegal in almost all cases since June, when the overturning of Roe v. Wade allowed Kentucky’s trigger law and fetal heartbeat law to go into effect.

The only exceptions to the commonwealth’s ban are when a pregnancy must be terminated to save the pregnant person’s life or to prevent the serious, permanent impairment of a life-sustaining organ of a pregnant person. Legal exceptions are not made for cases of rape, incest or fetal anomaly.

Here’s what to know about services in surrounding states, including Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, and accessing care.

Status of abortion care in surrounding states

The nearest health clinic to Lexington offering abortions is the Cincinnati Surgical Center, according to Planned Parenthood.

Ohio has a mandatory 24-hour waiting period, so a patient in Cincinnati would have to attend a state-directed information appointment in person, wait 24 hours and then return for the appointment.

A trip from Lexington to Cincinnati takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes by car, depending on traffic. Greyhound bus tickets from Lexington to Cincinnati are available for about $30 each way.

The Cincinnati Surgical Center is located at 2314 Auburn Ave. and offers medication abortions up to 10 weeks from the start of your last menstrual period, as well as surgical abortions up to 21 weeks and six days.

Appointments are required for both types of abortion, and the procedure is legal in Ohio up to 21 weeks and six days past the start of your last period.

There is a parental notification requirement for minors in Ohio. Planned Parenthood staff can assist minor patients in talking with their parents about abortion or obtaining a judicial bypass.

Abortion is legal in Indiana up to a certain point as of Feb. 16 due to a temporary injunction blocking a ban in the state, and access in Ohio is also based on a court challenge and could change.

Another Midwest state, Illinois, enshrines the right to an abortion in law, and many patients from out of state seek care there. More than 9,600 people from other states sought abortion in Illinois in 2020, according to state data.

Abortion is not heavily restricted in Illinois. Surgical abortion is legal in the state up to 22 weeks and six days post-gestation, and the abortion pill is offered up to 11 weeks and six days post-gestation. As of June, Illinois no longer requires parental notification.

The nearest Illinois clinic to Lexington offering abortions is Champaign Health Center, which is about 5 hours away by car.

You can use this abortion provider locator to find a clinic near you. The National Network of Abortion Funds provides resources to those seeking financial assistance for reproductive care.

Do you have a question about health care in Kentucky for our service journalism team? We’d like to hear from you. Fill out out Know Your Kentucky form or email ask@herald-leader.com.