Anti-abortion demonstrators listen to President Donald Trump as he speaks at the 47th annual "March for Life" in Washington, D.C., Jan.
24, 2020. Olivier Douliery | Afp | Getty Images Voters in seven out of 10 states approved ballot measures this week to safeguard abortion rights, a hot-button issue that helped drive Americans to the polls. But President-elect Donald Trump 's victory early Wednesday could make access to the procedure more vulnerable and uncertain across the U.
S., health policy experts warned, leaving the reproductive well-being of many women hanging in the balance. Trump has waffled considerably on his position on abortion, most recently saying he would not support a federal ban and wants to leave the issue up to the states.
But Trump and his appointees to federal agencies could further restrict abortion on the federal level through methods that won't require Congress to pass new legislation. "The more restrictions we see on abortion over the next four years, the worse health outcomes are going to be. People are suffering and dying unnecessarily," said Katie O'Connor, senior director of federal abortion policy at the National Women's Law Center.
Abortion access in the U.S. has already been in a state of flux in the two years since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v.
Wade and ended the federal constitutional right to the procedure — a decision Trump takes credit for since he reshaped the court. As of last year, more than 25 million women ages 15 to 44 lived .
