Planned Parenthood Action Fund Condemns Backdoor Abortion Ban Passed in Alabama
For Immediate Release: April 3, 2013
“Absolutely Unacceptable” Bill Could Further Restrict Women’s Access to Care if Signed, says Planned Parenthood Action Fund
NEW YORK—Planned Parenthood Action Fund today condemned legislation passed by the Alabama state legislature that could essentially ban abortion in the state.
The bill mirrors laws recently passed in North Dakota and Mississippi requiring all doctors that provide safe and legal abortion to have admitting privileges at a local hospital, a medically unnecessary requirement purposely designed to limit access to abortion.
The bill is now headed to Alabama Governor Robert Bentley’s desk. Planned Parenthood calls for the Governor to veto the bill.
Statement from Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood Action Fund:
“This bill does nothing to protect the health of Alabama women. It aims to limit women’s access to safe and legal abortion.
“Today Alabama became the latest state seeking to essentially ban abortion statewide. We call on Governor Bentley to stand with Alabama women and veto this dangerous bill.
“It’s time for politicians to listen to the people. Americans recognize that abortion is a deeply personal decision and that politicians should not meddle in personal medical decisions.
“By shutting down health centers that provide a range of services to women, this bill would also make it harder for women to get affordable birth control, lifesaving cancer screenings, and testing and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases. More than half of all pregnancies in Alabama are unintended. The state should be giving women more access to health care, not less.”
Background
- Nationally-recognized women’s health experts point out that bills like Alabama’s House Bill 57 do nothing to enhance patient health and safety. David Grimes, former chief of abortion surveillance at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says of bills like Senate Bill 537 in Texas: “These kinds of regulations do nothing to advance women’s health.”
- Nearly half of the 67 counties In Alabama lack an OB-GYN, and infant mortality rates are the third highest in the nation.
- Alabama’s bill is so extreme that people of all stripes are coming forward to oppose it, just like they did in North Dakota and Arkansas. Today hundreds of Alabama residents rallied at the state capitol to say ‘enough is enough’ to bills that would further restrict Alabama women’s access to health care.
- In addition to Alabama, Planned Parenthood’s state and national advocacy organizations are fighting similarly dangerous bills in states ranging from Texas, to Indiana, to North Carolina.