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- A Canadian minister said Americans could get abortions in Canada if Roe v. Wade were overturned.
- However, Americans will have to pay for the procedure, be it out-of-pocket or via their insurance.
- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also reaffirmed his support for abortion rights in Canada.
A Canadian minister has confirmed that if Roe v. Wade were to be overturned by the Supreme Court, Americans would still be able to get abortions across the border.
In an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation on Tuesday, Karina Gould, the Canadian minister of families, children, and social development, said that access to abortions would continue to be available in her country to US citizens.
“I don’t see why we would not,” Gould said, per the outlet. “If they, people, come here and need access, certainly, you know, that’s a service that would be provided.”
Gould’s comments came following the leak of the Supreme Court’s draft majority opinion on Roe v. Wade.
The document, penned by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, noted that “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start” and that it is “time to heed the Constitution” and “return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”
The scrapping of Roe v. Wade could result in abortion becoming illegal in many states. For example, 13 states have “trigger” laws that could lead to abortion being swiftly outlawed if the case is overturned.
Gould also told CBC that the potential decision on Roe v. Wade could also hurt Canadian women seeking the procedure in the US.
“One of the concerning factors here is that there are many Canadian women who maybe don’t live near a major city in Canada, but will often access these services in the United States,” she said, per the outlet.
A spokesperson for Gould told CBC News that Americans in Canada could obtain abortions but have to pay for them out-of-pocket or via their private insurance.
Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted on Tuesday supporting abortion rights.
“The right to choose is a woman’s right and a woman’s right alone. Every woman in Canada has a right to a safe and legal abortion,” Trudeau wrote, without explicitly referring to the SCOTUS document leak. “We’ll never back down from protecting and promoting women’s rights in Canada and around the world.”
On Wednesday, Trudeau told reporters that his government is looking at the country’s legal framework to ensure that women’s rights are protected “not just under this government, but under any future government.”
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