As Living Costs Rise, More People Need Assistance to Obtain Abortions, Virginia Fund Reports

As Virginians prepare to reject or approve an amendment to enshrine reproductive rights into the state’s constitution on Election Day next week, new data show more people inside and outside the state are relying on assistance to obtain abortions.

The Virginia-based Blue Ridge Abortion Fund on Monday reported an uptick in patients requesting their help to obtain the procedure amid bans in surrounding areas and rising costs of living.

Over the past year, from June 2025 to June 2026, BRAF supported 1,920 abortion seekers. According to their latest report, roughly $1.2 million in funding was disbursed among people who needed assistance to cover costs for the procedure itself and expenses like lodging or transportation.

More than one in four callers supported by BRAF stem from out of state — with most coming from North Carolina, Georgia and Florida, which have 6-week and 12-week limits.

BRAF director April Greene emphasized that people typically need to sort out time off from work, childcare or finances before they can obtain an abortion.

Rising costs of fuel, other goods squeeze already strained abortion funds

For those living in states with deep restrictions, sometimes time-strapped patients have to travel to less-restrictive states like Virginia. That process comes with a cost.

“The longer someone has to wait to access care, the more expensive and logistically complex that care becomes,” Greene explained.

Since the fund’s 1989 founding, BRAF has helped more than 15,000 people and committed $6.3 million in financial support. Over $4 million of that has been spent in the four years since federal abortion protections were overturned.

The overall cost of getting an abortion has also gone up, and fuel costs and inflation are also rising.  With costlier plane tickets or strain at the pump for patients traveling in and out of state, BRAF also reports a downtick in some donor bases.

“The economy is hitting everyone, and our donors aren’t immune from that,” Greene said.

A surge of donations in the summer of 2022 immediately following the Dobbs v. Jackson ruling — the U.S. Supreme Court case that overturned abortion protections — has helped sustain BRAF.

“Because of that post-Dobbs support, we were able to build up a bit of a reserve fund,” Greene said.

But with about $10,000 to $15,000 less in donations per month, Greene shared, the organization is grappling with less in its coffers to offer to people.

“If we aren’t able to kind of rebuild that individual donation momentum, we probably will be looking at needing to decrease our weekly funding budget in the new year for sure,” she said.

Constitutional: The amendment that could permanently protect reproductive rights in Virginia

While most nearby states have restrictions or bans, Maryland has permanently protected reproductive rights, similar to the proposition Virginia voters are deciding this year.

Greene said BRAF is watching to see if Virginians will approve the ballot referendum and noted that both states are critical access points for abortion care.

“We are really trying to remind folks that being able to access that legal right is just as important,” Greene said. “We need them to kind of stick with us for the long haul and make sure we can get people to those appointments after Election Day, too.”

By Charlotte Rene Woods, Virginia Mercury

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