Arizona Governor Just Signed Bill That Could Block Thousands of Patients from Essential Health Care Services

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey is at it again, rubber-stamping dangerous legislation designed to punish women and abortion providers. Last night, he signed a new bill that targets access to health care for patients who rely on Planned Parenthood health centers through Medicaid.

This year, every time his allies in the legislature passed harmful anti-abortion bills, Gov. Ducey signed them into law. He is determined to force his out-of-touch ideology on women across the state.

Why This Matters

Thousands of Arizonans count on Planned Parenthood health centers for birth control, cancer screenings, STI testing and other essential health care. Gov. Ducey just gave the state the power to block their health care. It's just one more attack in an ongoing campaign designed to shut down health centers and deny women the power to make their own medical decisions.

This type of politically motivated attack on women's health and rights isn't just dangerous — it's illegal. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has made it clear that it's against federal law to block women from a qualified Medicaid provider of their choice. But politicians like Gov. Ducey are far more interested in pushing an extreme agenda than following the law or respecting women's basic rights.

It's Not Just Arizona

Arizona is one of at least 24 states where lawmakers have launched these kinds of attacks on access to Planned Parenthood health centers — and these restrictions would have a devastating impact on patients who often have nowhere else to turn for care. 

Blocking care at Planned Parenthood has very real and devastating consequences for the communities served. Just consider these two facts:

• According to the Congressional Budget Office, if patients who rely on public health programs are blocked from coming to Planned Parenthood, up to 650,000 people would face decreased access to health care in just a one-year period.
• In Texas, a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that blocking patients from going to Planned Parenthood led to a 35% decline in women on Medicaid using the most effective methods of birth control and a dramatic 27% spike in births among women who had previously had access to injectable contraception through Medicaid. 

We Need Your Help to Fight Back

It's up to us to turn the tide. Anti-abortion lawmakers like Doug Ducey are hell-bent on standing between women and their doctors. We can't let them put their political agenda over the health and rights of women. Here are all the ways to take action.
 

Tags: Abortion, Arizona, Doug Ducey