West Virginia Women’s Health Clinic Opens in Maryland, with a Bonus for Local Jewish Community

On September 13, 2022, West Virginia began enforcing its total ban on abortion, which prohibited abortion at all stages of pregnancy, except in the case of a "nonmedically viable fetus," ectopic pregnancy, or medical emergency. 

The Women's Health Center of West Virginia in Charleston had been providing abortion services to the women of West Virginia for some 40 years. The clinic Executive Director (ED), Katie Quinonez, was not willing to give up, so she began looking for another location where abortion services could be provided. She looked in several locations but found that the Cumberland, MD area was a good location - it was only minutes from the West Virginia border, it was in a blue state (although in a red area of the state), it was only a short distance from Pennsylvania, and there were major roads into the area making travel from other states easy. When she was shown a building just south of Cumberland, with a back door view over the Potomac River into West Virginia, she knew she had found her location. 

Then, in March 2023, West Virginia Republican Gov. Jim Justice signed a bill banning gender-affirming care for minors. At that point, it was imperative to open a location where abortions, gender affirming care for minors, and all other women's health services could be provided in a non-judgmental, caring environment.

Fortuitously, following the Dobbs decision, several community members in far Western Maryland had come together to form a local group, the Mountain Maryland Alliance for Reproductive Freedom. Members of this group, myself included, proved instrumental in assisting with finding a location for the clinic and connecting Katie and her staff with Cumberland community members who would provide services, moral support, and financial support to the clinic.

In August 2023, my husband received an email from a Jewish nurse practitioner stating she was relocating to Cumberland for a position with "a new health center in the area," and that she wanted to connect with the local Jewish community. I knew immediately that she would be working at the Women's Health Center and confirmed that with the ED. Rachel Kashy arrived in September 2023 and began work immediately. She provides medication abortions and gender affirming hormone therapy, as well as routine women's health care. She has joined our congregation (B'er Chayim) and has already led services. We have become good friends and talk regularly.

It was basheret (meant to be)! We are proud to have the clinic in our community and are delighted to have Rachel as a member of our congregation.

The full range of women's health care is so important! Our community is in Appalachia, so even though we have a hospital here, we still lack specialists in many areas. In addition, it is generally a conservative area. So, for me, the establishment of the clinic in our area is a testament to local women being able to have a voice and exert power. The clinic, what it stands for, and the services it provides are so important to me that I have made a significant financial contribution to help the clinic get up and running.

As a P.S., we have just found out that the chosen doctor has received his Maryland license, enabling him to perform surgical abortions beginning July 1!