Women's clinics see rise in calls and visits

A recent Gallup Organization survey conducted for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists reported that nearly one in 10 married woman indicated that the economy was a factor in their decision to postpone a planned pregnancy. That same survey found that one in five women is more concerned about having an unintended pregnancy than a year ago and about one in five women is more conscientious about using birth control.

For women already struggling to make ends meet, paying for an abortion can be difficult, clinic officials said. As they scramble for money -- and week after week passes -- the cost of an abortion increases from about $450 for a first-trimester abortion to $1,200 in the second trimester.

In some cases, delays in obtaining funding have forced even more difficult choices. Lopez, whose Oakland-based group helps women in Northern and Central California, said some women who had decided to terminate early in their pregnancies instead have found themselves choosing between more difficult second-trimester abortions or continuing an unwanted pregnancy.

She said one woman from Kern County first called ACCESS when she was 11 weeks pregnant. The woman said her insurance wouldn't cover an abortion and she had tried for weeks to enroll in Medi-Cal, the state's healthcare system for the poor.

"She waited five weeks for the Medi-Cal. . . . By that point, she felt it was too late to personally go through with it," Lopez said. "This is a really good example of the barriers that are put in front of women who are trying to make responsible decisions early on."

Lopez said ACCESS helped the woman file a complaint about the delay.

"It's not like women are making these decisions at the drop of a hat," Lopez said. "They are considering their life situations."

Although many counties say they are seeing an increase in the number of applicants and processing time, officials in both Kern County and Los Angeles County said pregnant women take precedence over other cases.

The demand for reproductive healthcare -- in particular Medi-Cal-funded abortions -- has pushed some clinics over the edge.

In Oakland, one of the country's oldest feminist health clinics -- Women's Choice Clinic -- closed its doors last month because it couldn't cover its bills, the result, its director said, of a growing Medi-Cal patient load, underfunded claims and a decrease in charitable contributions.

"We're just a small little clinic," said Linci Comi, the clinic's director. "We can't hold up the state. We're always short of cash. Medi-Cal is always slow pay, low pay, no pay. We just got in the squeeze. You reach a point where you can't keep doing it."

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kimi.yoshino@latimes.com