LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Kentucky’s near-total abortion ban has been in effect since 2022. The only exceptions are to save the mother’s life or to prevent a disabling injury.

There are medical professionals and students who have raised concerns about the ban.

What You Need To Know

  •  Kentucky has a near-total abortion ban that has been in place since 2022

  •  The ban has medical professionals and students concerned 

  •  Urooj Nasim and Danielle Graves are two medical students at the University of Louisville who also advocate for reproductive rights

  • They say that Kentucky's ban makes the state a less attractive place for medical students to practice in once they become physicians

Urooj Nasim and Danielle Graves are both completing medical school at the University of Louisville.

Nasim, a second-year medical student, was raised by two doctors.

“I’ve really always been, you know, convinced from a very young age that if you want to make a difference in people’s lives, being a doctor is a really great way to do that so I decided to try and become one myself,” said Nasim.

Graves, who is a third-year medical student, remembers seeing her mother go through a high-risk pregnancy.

“I went with her to a lot of those appointments as a child and I think, honestly, that was a lot of what stayed in my head as I went on and started considering careers and ended up deciding that I wanted to become a doctor,” said Graves.

Both students were raised in Kentucky.

Nasim is still undecided on what kind of doctor she wants to be but has an interest in Obstetrics and Gynecology (OB/GYN).

“My decision for whether or not to pursue OB/GYN is complicated by the fact that we have this abortion ban in Kentucky,” said Nasim.

The near-total abortion ban has Nasim considering to either not be an OB/GYN or leave Kentucky.

Graves, who is set on becoming an OB/GYN and also wants to stay in Kentucky, has her concerns with this as well.

“The minutiae of the law means that we have to worry at every step of the process that there’s a chance that we could be doing something that is a class-D felony,” said Graves.

They say that this has created a culture of fear.

Nearly 60% of third and fourth-year medical students say that they are unlikely to apply for residency in a state with abortion restrictions, according to a survey of about 500 students.

“I don’t want to put myself in a position where I have to choose between, you know, protecting myself from going to jail and protecting my patient in terms of what’s right for them,” said Nasim.

Nasim and Graves say that the near-total abortion ban makes Kentucky a less attractive place for medical students to practice in. The state already has a physician shortage.

Kentucky also has the second highest maternal mortality rate in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Both students cited this as another concern with the near-total abortion ban and say there is a need for more OB/GYNs in the state.

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