Because of the increasing number of restrictive abortion laws at the state level—and the racist, classist, and sexist implications of these measures—abortion funds are an indispensable resource for many people in the United States who rely on these organizations for financial assistance for their health care. Activists have known this for a long time, but now we have further proof, thanks to a report released this week by the the National Network of Abortion Funds (NNAF), which shares data from almost 4,000 cases of people seeking help paying for an abortion through its George Tiller Memorial Fund.

What is abortion funds, and why are they necessary? Abortion funds are nonprofit groups that help people pay for the cost of their abortion. Abortion funds fill a crucial gap in the health care system left by the Hyde Amendment. Passed in 1976 and every year since, Hyde legalized the government’s ability to withhold coverage of abortion from insurance providers like Medicaid, Medicare, Indian Health Services, the Peace Corps, the military, and any other federally funded insurance program. Abortion is the only procedure singled out by the government as ineligible for insurance coverage, which puts the procedure even further out of reach for people with the fewest resources.

In analyzing data from almost 4,000 people seeking abortion funding, NNAF researchers uncovered that the Hyde Amendment and other abortion restrictions hurt young women and women of color, especially black women, the most. According to the Guttmacher Institute, the majority of abortion patients in the U.S. are in their first trimeste and in their mid- to late twenties; about 40 percent are white, one third are African American, and one quarter are Latina. By contrast, people who received assistance from the Tiller Fund were more likely to be African American, in their teens or early twenties, and in their second trimester when seeking an abortion. These clear differences in who needs to seek help paying for an abortion show that people of color, particularly black women, and young women bear the brunt of the effect of abortion restrictions.

Because of these disparities, NNAF started the Tiller Fund just hours after Kansas doctor and abortion provider George Tiller was murdered at his church in May 2009. Dr. Tiller was internationally recognized for providing compassionate second- and third-trimester abortions. Callers seeking assistance from the Tiller Fund had on average $500 to contribute toward the cost of their abortion—just one fourth of what they needed for the total cost. Over the five years covered by the report, the distance patients had to travel for an abortion doubled, from 97 miles in 2010 to almost 200 miles in 2014. The authors say that these barriers, combined with additional—and onerous—state-based abortion restrictions like waiting periods and mandatory ultrasounds “create a class-based gap in the reproductive health system that often cannot be bridged by people who are struggling to get by.”

Trying to find the money to fund an abortion is hardly the only stressor in the lives of Tiller Fund recipients. They disclosed a range of traumatizing life events, such as partner violence, lack of access to preventive health care, housing crises, and economic distress. Over half of the study's sample experienced at least two of these incidents, with black women and women in the South suffering through the greatest number of these circumstances. The authors speculate that having to fundraise for an abortion likely amplifies the effects of these traumas.

These findings suggest that it’s young women and people of color, black women in particular, who face the discriminatory impact of abortion restrictions, leaving safe and timely abortion care further and further out of reach. Repealing the Hyde Amendment would be the quickest remedy to these urgent health problems, so make sure your representative knows if you think this is a priority.

In the meantime, find your local abortion fund, donate, and volunteer. Read up on reproductive justice, which is a framework that advocates for the leadership of people most impacted by abortion restrictions—in this case, poor people, women of color and black women in particular, young women, and people in the South. Talk to your friends. Remind them that no one should have to decide between paying for an abortion and putting food on the table for their family.