Washington (AFP)

Abortion is legal throughout the United States but the Americans are not equal to this test, the difficulty is directly related to the place of residence and the size of the wallet.

"If you live in the south or the center of the country, access is very limited, so if you live in cities in the west or the north-east, it's better," says Elizabeth Nash, an analyst with Guttmacher Institute research center that advocates for the right of women to have an abortion.

From California, to the West, where more than 150 clinics perform voluntary abortion (abortion) in Mississippi, South or Missouri (center) where there is only one for the entire state , the disparities are enormous.

In this huge federation, where speed limits or the legal age of marriage also vary from state to state, the Supreme Court has set abortion "a minimum standard for the entire country," says Meg Penrose Professor of Law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law.

In a series of judgments, the first of which dates back to 1973, she stated that abortion is a "fundamental right" as long as the fetus is "unsustainable", around the 24th week of pregnancy.

"At the same time, the 50 independent states retain the right to ensure that women's health is not compromised," adds the academic. They can therefore legislate provided they do not impose an "undue burden" on patients.

This criterion is "very vague", regrets Elizabeth Nash, research center Guttmacher Institute, which defends the right to abortion.

"It has allowed the proliferation of restrictions on abortion," she continues. His institute has counted more than 1,200 since 1973.

- Size of the corridors -

Conservative states initially imposed stringent conditions on facilities for abortion, requiring them to be near a hospital, or have operating rooms or corridors of a certain size. .

Others, such as Mississippi or North Carolina, have reduced the legal duration of abortions to 20 weeks of pregnancy.

As for women, five states require that they be "warned" of a supposed link between abortion and breast cancer. Thirteen demand that they be told about the possible suffering of the fetus.

Another nerve of war: money. Eleven states prohibit private medical insurance from reimbursing abortions.

On the other side of the country (and the political chessboard), sixteen states are using their funds to pay for the abortions of poor women. One half does not ask for any parental authorization for minors, nor does it require time for reflection between the first consultation and the intervention.

While an abortion costs an average of $ 500, these differences increase the inequalities between rich and poor women. "If it takes 200 km to go to the clinic and wait three days before the second appointment", the bill becomes very heavy, says Ms. Nash.

- Evangelicals -

The United States has about 15 abortions per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44, a figure comparable to Great Britain or France.

But, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the rate is 6.2 per 1,000 in Alabama (South) and 23.1 per 1,000 in New York State.

In addition to the legal framework, "the level of education, economic development, religion are the underlying factors" of these disparities, says Dick Howard, Professor of Law at the University of Virginia.

The South, poorer, more rural, less educated, has many Evangelical Christians, a group very hostile to abortion, he notes.

According to a Pew poll in 2014, nearly 60% of people in Alabama or Mississippi (South) want abortion to be illegal, while 74% of Massachusetts residents (Northeast) support the legality of abortions.

And the gaps could widen further under the influence of the judges appointed to the Supreme Court by Republican President Donald Trump.

The most conservative states have embarked on a massive anti-abortion offensive in the hope that the US law temple will reverse its 1973 decision.

In the face of this assault, the reworked court "will not ban abortion, but it is likely that it says that every state is free to decide," predicts Dick Howard. "And here we could end with 50 different diets."

? 2019 AFP