(WWJ) Two-thirds of Michigan voters want to leave Roe v. Wade in place, a new survey shows.
The new poll from the Detroit News and WDIV-TV comes as the U.S. Supreme Court has been asked to review a case that requests overturning Roe v. Wade, which has upheld the legal right to abortion for over 50 years.
If the Supreme Court rules to change — or repeal — the abortion law, Michigan would be more impacted than any other state, experts say.
Michigan has an estimated 2.2 million women, between the ages of 15 and 49, that would be greatly affected if the law was overturned.
Depending how an abortion ban would play out in Michigan, experts say women could be forced to travel out of state for abortion services.
Women who have limited access, or no access, to transportation would be effectively left without the ability to make a choice, Dr. Sarah Wallett, an OB/GYN and the chief medical officer with Planned Parenthood of Michigan, told the Detroit News.
"It can cause people a lot of suffering and a lot of unnecessary fear, having to travel outside of the state," Dr. Wallett said.
"The end result is ... unnecessarily poor outcomes."
Those in favor of changing the abortion law see this as an opportunity for women to change their views on pregnancy and rethink abortion.
"I would hope that having legal protection for the unborn in the state, they would say, 'Hey, you know what? I can do this, people can help me,'" said Genevieve Marnon, legislative director for Right to Life Michigan.
The U.S. Supreme Court is expect to make a final decision sometime this year.
The Court originally ruled in 1973, that the Constitution of the United Sates protected a pregnant woman's right to abortion, effectively overriding abortion laws in numerous states.
