The New York Times has a piece this morning about the Health and Human Services (HHS) regulation that the Bush administration is planning to slip onto the books before he leaves office - you know, the one that would prevent family planning clinics from "discriminating" against employees who are opposed to abortion on "religious or moral grounds," even if they're working at an abortion clinic, and even if they believe birth control is abortion.
With the final version of the regulation (which may very well pass) to be released in a matter of days, Planned Parenthood, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights issued a joint letter to the U.S. Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) at the Office of Management and Budget. Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards said, "It's unconscionable that the Bush administration, while promising a smooth transition, would take a final opportunity to politicize women's health." The regulations will hit low-income women seeking reproductive health care the worst, allowing pharmacists to refuse birth control to Medicaid recipients and literally undo state laws that require hospitals to dispense EC to rape survivors.
This is all despite the 200,000 plus comments sent to HHS opposing the rule. While Obama is opposed to the regulations and his aides say he will try to rescind the rule, the process could take up to 6 months. And assuming Obama would be able to rescind it in the end, that's still plenty of time to make plenty an impact.
Click here to read the letter to OIRA, and take action here.
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Thanks for the heads up!
LOL@the pic ;)
damn this is so infuriating!! is all i have to say right now.....grrr!
This is typical, fucking typical. We finally elect someone who supports reproductive freedom and Dubya sneaks in this little gem. Ugh, I'm so angry right now.
Do ya think pro-choice types will be able to work at those "pregnancy counseling" centers, too?
That is a good point!
I dont understand how they have the right to deny people with Medicare their birth control? Shouldnt women be to do whatever they want regarding their own bodies? Who are the government or pharmacists to say that women cannot have access to birth control?
There is lots more information about this at www.birthcontrolwatch.org, a site created to maintain awareness of issues that threaten reproductive rights.
I don't understand why someone would want to take these rights away from us? Has anyone ever listened to that new Pink song Dear Mr. President? In her lyrics she says: " What kind of father would take his own daughter's rights away?
And what kind of father might hate his own daughter if she were gay?
I can only imagine what the first lady has to say"
its a good song, and she she says a lot of powerful things in it.
So let me get this right, a health professional couldn't refuse to treat a mass murderer out of 'moral objection' but it's fine to refuse a woman contraception or an abortion for precisely that reason? I thought there was something called the Hippocratic oath that said if you choose to become a doctor you have to act in the best interests of the patient at all times... and seeing as abortion and contraception are both legal in the US, hasn't it been decided by law that it is in a woman's best interests to have safe access to them, not to mention information about them? In passing this legislation (if it goes through) are they not basically saying religious people are above the law? Would doctors who are Jehovah's Witnesses now be able to refuse to perform blood transfusions? Very frightening.
President Bush's 11th hour attempt to restrict access to comprehensive health care for women is outrageous. The sweeping defeats of anti-abortion measures across the country indicate that this nation does not want the government interfering in private medical decisions.
In the last election, South Dakotans resoundingly voted against a measure that would have effectively banned abortion in the state. Voters do not want Big government interfering in decisions best left to a woman, her family, and her doctor. Every state that was given the opportunity to vote on anti-choice measures,voted "No".
But, the President and HHS seek to ignore the obvious will of the people to sneak last-minute regulations in under the wire. It is up to President-Elect Obama, the newly sworn-in 111th Congress, and every pro-choice voter in this country to ensure that there will never be another regulation designed to infringe on a woman's right to information regarding her personal medical decisions.