Ep 006: (Bonus) Ohio Abortion Regulations and Ethical Dilemmas for OBGYNs With Meredith Field & Jessie Hill

As more states rush to enact legislation that restricts or bans abortion, many obstetrician-gynecologists (OBGYNs) are left feeling undermined by new laws that impede the quality of care they are able to provide to their patients.

With institutions interpreting the law inconsistently, this can further limit OBGYNs’ ability to exercise clinical judgment. Substantial gray areas have emerged in abortion care, including differing clinical interpretations of fetal “viability” and what exactly constitutes a “life threatening” emergency for a pregnant person, which only further muddies the waters for medical providers.

In today’s episode of the Your Health Unlocked Podcast, we are joined by Alfred University Assistant Professor of Sociology Meredith Field and Jessie Hill, Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Development and Judge Ben C. Green Professor of Law, to discuss the impact of Ohio laws on medical practice in light of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Key findings of a study into how anti-abortion laws affect the practice of OBGYNs
• What the potential impacts of a post-Roe world could be on health care at large
• What the legal landscape of abortion in Ohio looks like
• The realities of working as a hospital lawyer

More about Meredith & Jessie:

Meredith P. Field is an assistant Sociology professor at Alfred University and the lead author of an article in the current issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology, which analyzes OBGYNS’ experiences with, and perspectives on, how Ohio’s abortion-restrictive regulatory landscape affects their health care practices.

Meredith completed one year as the OPEN Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Sociology at the University of Cincinnati. She earned her dual-title PhD in Rural Sociology and Women’s and Gender Studies at Pennsylvania State University.

Inspired by her volunteer work as a reproductive health community educator and organizer in rural Central Pennsylvania, Meredith attended graduate school and is now trained as both a rural sociologist and a feminist sociologist. Her research program centers around issues of equity and access to healthcare.

Jessie Hill is Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Development and Judge Ben C. Green Professor of Law. Before entering private practice, Hill worked at the Reproductive Freedom Project of the national ACLU office in New York, litigating challenges to state-law restrictions on reproductive rights. Jessie’s teaching concentrates on constitutional law, civil rights, reproductive rights, and law and religion.

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