Abortion in Guam

Abortion in Guam is legal but there were no abortion providers in Guam as of 2018.

Terminology
Main article: Abortion

The abortion debate most commonly relates to the "induced abortion" of an embryo or fetus at some point in a pregnancy, which is also how the term is used in a legal sense.[note 1] Some also use the term "elective abortion", which is used in relation to a claim to an unrestricted right of a woman to an abortion, whether or not she chooses to have one. The term elective abortion or voluntary abortion describes the interruption of pregnancy before viability at the request of the woman, but not for medical reasons.[1]

Anti-abortion advocates tend to use terms such as "unborn baby", "unborn child", or "pre-born child",[2][3] and see the medical terms "embryo", "zygote", and "fetus" as dehumanizing.[4][5] Both "pro-choice" and "pro-life" are examples of terms labeled as political framing: they are terms which purposely try to define their philosophies in the best possible light, while by definition attempting to describe their opposition in the worst possible light. "Pro-choice" implies that the alternative viewpoint is "anti-choice", while "pro-life" implies the alternative viewpoint is "pro-death" or "anti-life".[6] The Associated Press encourages journalists to use the terms "abortion rights" and "anti-abortion".[7]

History

Abortion, also known as pokká, was first documented in Guam in the 1750s. Chamorro women sought suicide, sterilization, or abortion as they did not wish to birth a child into the "subjugation of the Spaniards".[8] Early methods utilized by Chamorro women to self-induce abortion included consuming drinks made from tree trunks, roots, and leaves.[8]

Abortion access

During the 1990s, women who needed abortions often traveled to the Philippines to get an abortion as there were no legal options on the island.[9] From 2000 to 2018, two medical providers performed the majority of abortions on Guam. However, after the last doctor providing abortion services retired in June 2018, women were left with few options for legal abortion services. Women seeking abortion may pay out-of-pocket to travel to Hawaii or Japan.[9]

Legislative and judicial history

As a United States territory, Guam is subject to federal legislation of the United States. In 1990, the Legislature of Guam enacted a law prohibiting abortion in all cases except when there was "substantial risk" to her life or that continuing the pregnancy would "gravely impair" her health. [10][9] This law was challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union and struck down by the ninth circuit court of Guam in a case called Guam Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists v. Ada in 1997. [10][11][12] In 2012, the Woman's Reproductive Health Information Act was passed, creating new restrictions for abortion provision, including a 13-week gestational age limit, a physician-only requirement, and a 24 hour mandatory waiting period.[13][14]

Hospital and clinic history

There were no clinics or doctors providing abortion services during much of the 1990s.[9] Since the 2000s and up to 2016, there were two doctors who performed abortions in Guam.  That year on November 30, Dr. Edmund Griley at the Guam PolyClinic retired and then Dr. William Freeman at the Women's Clinic retired in June 2018.  This left Guam without an abortion provider.[9] Dr. Jeffrey Gabel took over the Women's Clinic in June 2018 and renamed it the Dr. Gabel's Clinic Obstetrics & Gynecology Para Famalao’an but since Gabel is pro-life, he refused to provide abortion services.[9] Guam Memorial Hospital did not openly provide abortions and refused to refer women with life-threatening conditions to other medical facilities for abortions.[9] Guam Regional Medical City also did not have any doctors willing to openly provide abortions and they did not provide referrals to doctors who provided them.[9] Department of Public Health and Social Services also refused to provide abortion referrals.[9]

Statistics

In 2017, 239 abortions were performed, and 97% of these abortions utilized surgical intervention, such as dilation and curettage or intrauterine saline infusion. All but three abortions were performed at Women's Clinic.[15] As legal abortion is no longer readily available in Guam,[9] the current rate of abortion is not known.

Abortions by Type of Procedure (number of cases)[15]
Method of Abortion 2017 2016 2015
Uterine curettage or evacuation 219 279 259
Intrauterine Saline Solution Infusion 13 8 3
Medication-induced 3 1 1
Feticidal injection 4 0 0
Not reported 0 1 0
Total Number of Cases 239 289 263

Anti-abortion and abortion rights movements

The Catholic Church of Guam is active in support of abortion restrictions through participation in the Rally for Life march.[9] Guam's Governor Lou Leon Guerrero has publicly supported the recruitment of an abortion provider to Guam.[16]

Footnotes
  1. According to the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade:
    (a) For the stage prior to approximately the end of the first trimester, the abortion decision and its effectuation must be left to the medical judgement of the pregnant woman's attending physician. (b) For the stage subsequent to approximately the end of the first trimester, the State, in promoting its interest in the health of the mother, may, if it chooses, regulate the abortion procedure in ways that are reasonably related to maternal health. (c) For the stage subsequent to viability, the State in promoting its interest in the potentiality of human life may, if it chooses, regulate, and even proscribe, abortion except where it is necessary, in appropriate medical judgement, for the preservation of the life or health of the mother.
    Likewise, Black's Law Dictionary defines abortion as "knowing destruction" or "intentional expulsion or removal".


References
  1. Watson, Katie (20 Dec 2019). "Why We Should Stop Using the Term "Elective Abortion"". AMA Journal of Ethics. 20: E1175-1180. doi:10.1001/amajethics.2018.1175. PMID 30585581. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  2. Chamberlain, Pam; Hardisty, Jean (2007). "The Importance of the Political 'Framing' of Abortion". The Public Eye Magazine. 14 (1).
  3. "The Roberts Court Takes on Abortion". New York Times. November 5, 2006. Retrieved January 18, 2008.
  4. Brennan 'Dehumanizing the vulnerable' 2000
  5. Getek, Kathryn; Cunningham, Mark (February 1996). "A Sheep in Wolf's Clothing – Language and the Abortion Debate". Princeton Progressive Review.
  6. "Example of "anti-life" terminology" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-07-27. Retrieved 2011-11-16.
  7. Goldstein, Norm, ed. The Associated Press Stylebook. Philadelphia: Basic Books, 2007.
  8. Rubinstein, Donald (1992). "Culture in court : notes and reflections on abortion in Guam". Journal de la Société des Océanistes. 94 (1): 35–44. doi:10.3406/jso.1992.2605.
  9. "No abortion providers on Guam". Pacific Daily News. Retrieved 2019-05-29.
  10. Arndorfer, Elizabeth; Michael, Jodi; Moskowitz, Laura; Grant, Juli A.; Siebel, Liza (December 1998). A State-By-State Review of Abortion and Reproductive Rights. DIANE Publishing. ISBN 9780788174810.
  11. Lewin, Tamar (1990-03-21). "Guam's Abortion Law Tested By A.C.L.U. Lawyer's Speech". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  12. Lewis, Neil A.; Times, Special To the New York (1990-08-24). "Judge in Guam Rejects Strict Law on Abortion". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  13. "Guam Legal Code" (PDF).
  14. Center, Pacific News (2014-03-31). "DPHSS: Enforcement of "The Women's Reproductive Health Information Act " Will Begin June 2". PNC News First. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
  15. "Guam 2018 Statistical Yearbook | Statistics for Development Division". sdd.spc.int. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  16. Post, Lannie Walker | The Guam Daily. "Inquiry into Guam abortion doctor continues". The Guam Daily Post. Retrieved 2020-05-11.
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