Potential Texas ordinance drives conversation about abortion laws on Reddit
An educational video about so-called crisis pregnancy centers receives mixed reactions from viewers.
New research is generating news coverage about reproductive cancer screenings.
This past week, online conversations about reproductive health covered reproductive cancer screenings and abortion laws. News of a potential abortion travel ban in Amarillo, Texas, garnered the most engagement.
While news articles covering these topics received minimal engagement on social media compared to articles from previous weeks, they highlight the need for better education around local abortion laws and provide an opportunity for public health communicators to share reproductive cancer screening recommendations.
Insights brought to you by the reporters and science writers of Public Good News (PGN), a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to improving community health.
What’s trending nationally in conversations about reproductive health
Abortion continues to be the main driver of reproductive health conversation online. In the past week, several news outlets reported that this November, residents of Amarillo, Texas, will vote on an ordinance that would make the city a so-called “sanctuary city for the unborn” and ban “abortion trafficking.” If passed, the ordinance would target anyone who “aids or abets an elective abortion if the abortion is performed on a resident of Amarillo,” regardless of where the abortion occurs. Texans would also be able to sue one another over suspected violations of the ordinance. Online conversation about this story primarily occurred on Reddit, where one post garnered approximately 2,100 upvotes and 530 comments as of July 23. Most comments expressed concerns about the law and questioned how it would be enforced. One comment read, “Texas, the land of the free and home of...border pregnancy tests for all women?”
On July 17, an NPR article discussed the pros and cons of routine mammograms beginning at age 40. Experts quoted in the article emphasized that patients should be informed about the cons of early breast cancer screening—including the potential for false positive results, anxiety, unnecessary biopsies, and aggressive treatment for benign tumors.
On July 18, the Commonwealth Fund published a scorecard ranking states according to their reproductive health outcomes in 2022. Several news articles covered the scorecard’s findings. An Axios article highlighted the finding that states with lower rates of preventative reproductive health care had higher death rates from reproductive cancers. An NBC article brought attention to the finding that states with the most abortion restrictions had the worst reproductive health outcomes. These stories were shared on multiple social media platforms, but they received little engagement and no comments.
Recommendations brought to you by the health communication experts behind Infodemiology.com.
Recommendations for public health professionals
Each week, the Infodemiology.com team will provide messaging recommendations in response to some of the trending narratives outlined above. These helpful tips can be used when creating content, updating web and FAQ pages, and developing strategy for messaging about reproductive health.
Given the widespread concern about Amarillo’s potential abortion travel ban, the public may have questions about local abortion laws and whether it is legal to travel for an abortion. Explaining that no current state laws explicitly prohibit traveling across state lines for an abortion is recommended. Additional messaging may direct target populations to AbortionFinder.org’s state-by-state guide, which provides information about local abortion laws.
Ensuring that abortion-related messaging includes information about where and how people can access abortion pills in your state and financial resources to help cover the cost of abortions and abortion-related travel is also recommended.
These conversations also provide an opportunity for community organizations, public health departments, and other partners—particularly those that serve women and trans populations—to educate the public about recommended reproductive cancer screenings. Messaging may emphasize the current breast cancer and cervical cancer screening recommendations from the CDC. Including information in educational materials about local health clinics that provide these screenings is recommended.