By Jean Lee -
NBC News
People from all over Wyoming and Idaho drive hundreds of miles, sometimes through snow and rain, to reach a clinic in the foothills of the Teton Mountains in Jackson, Wyoming, to see Brent Blue.
Blue is the only doctor in the state that openly offers medical and surgical abortions, but their services may no longer be available there soon.
[No, it is false that there is an increased risk of miscarriage from the COVID-19 vaccine]
Abortion rights activists say its absence would create a huge gap in health care options in Wyoming and leave them more exposed to anti-abortion protesters protesting outside clinics and doctors' homes, sometimes with damage. to property and death threats.
While some Wyoming doctors continue to quietly provide abortions to some long-term patients, Blue, 71, has been advertising her services in this state of 576,851 for decades.
"If I succumb to threats and risk, anti-abortionists win, and women lose," argued Blue.
"If health care providers are not upholding women's rights to health care, who will?"
Blue sold the clinic he founded 19 years ago, Emergacare, to St. John's Health in 2020. He remained there as a doctor, but resigned in October with a 120-day notice, citing a hostile work environment.
His last day is scheduled for February 10.
John's Health did not respond to requests for comment.
[California prepares to become a safe abortion destination amid increasing restrictions in other states]
Blue, who is divorced with three adult children, said he is considering moving to Idaho, where he thinks it may be easier to open a new clinic and would be closer to some of his patients than Jackson.
He plans to sue St. John's Health next week and ask the court to vacate a stipulation in his contract that prohibits him from working in Teton County, Wyoming, for three years after leaving the company.
But right now, he's not even sure if he's still practicing medicine.
"It's quite emotional," said his medical assistant, Duane Mortenson, 51, who has worked for Blue for three years.
“It's really a bummer.
I have worked with many doctors during my time as a medical assistant, and he is the best that I have worked with and that I have worked for, "he stated.
[Uma Thurman recounts the abortion she experienced as a teenager in solidarity with the women of Texas]
Blue is one of only two medical abortion providers in Wyoming.
Women typically cannot access medical abortions, administered using a prescription pill, after 10 weeks of pregnancy, explained Dr. Giovannina Anthony, a physician at the other provider, Women's Health and Family Care.
"Dr. Blue was really willing to come out and publicize, and I think he was a lightning rod for the issue for many, many years here," Anthony explained, adding that she considers abortion an essential element of care for women. reproductive health.
Supreme Court upholds Texas abortion law but warns that it can be challenged
Dec 10, 202100: 29
With Blue's possible departure on the horizon, pro-life activists have been anonymously calling Anthony's office or standing outside, watching patients come in.
There isn't much you can do other than ignore them and hope they go away.
Casey Cochran, 30, who has worked for Blue since 2019 as an office manager, said she got used to the anti-abortion protesters outside Emergacare, holding signs with violent images and vulgar language.
[Eight keys to understanding why the Texas anti-abortion law and the Supreme Court decision are so controversial]
But he also saw a display of Blue's character on a pride flag displayed in front of the clinic's front door.
Wyoming is "the reddest state in the nation," recalled Cochran, struggling to come out of the closet.
The exhibition showed him the acceptance of the people.
[This woman was prosecuted for a miscarriage. Cases like yours are increasing, especially for minorities]
"I knew he was supporting me whether I knew it or not," Cochran said.
John's Family Health and Urgent Care occupies the same building as the now closed Emergacare, but the pride flag is no longer there.
Blue, who has been described by her colleagues as "a blue dot in a red sea," said she offers a medical service that should be part of any comprehensive family care.
She also counseled pregnant women on alternatives to abortion.
Blue sold the clinic he founded 19 years ago, Emergacare, to St. John's Health in 2020.Bradly J. Boner for NBC News
“Sometimes it is right for someone to be pregnant and have a child, and other times it is not.
It is up to each woman to make that decision.
It does not depend on me, "he said.
Although leaving his lifelong patients will be difficult, he said he is more concerned about the future of medical services in his home state.
State lawmakers will likely introduce anti-abortion bills during the February budget session, including a possible Texas-like bill that would ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy and another that would ban medical abortions, according to Sharon. Breitweiser, CEO of NARAL Pro-Choice Wyoming.
["It has consequences for life." What happens when someone who wishes to have an abortion cannot?]
“All of them are bad public policies and bad for access to health care.
They are all very, very worrying, "he said.
With the budget session approaching and possibly her last day of exercise in Wyoming, Blue has been thinking lately about why she risked her safety to defend women's health.
He recalls a long day in San Francisco early in his career when he would make obstetric home visits.
After delivering a healthy baby, she sat down to dinner in Italian with the patient's family, surrounded by generations of women: the young mother who had just given birth, her mother, her grandmother, and her great-grandmother.
In difficult times, look back to that day, and your question is answered.
"I have always thought that women's rights and women's health are an important issue," she said.
"And I've never understood why women get the short end of the health care stick."