Congress Passes Appropriations Bill that Attacks Reproductive Rights
Congress spent the last few weeks in frantic negotiations over a massive end-of-the-year budget bill. In a rare Saturday session, anti-choice legislators in Congress took advantage of the opportunity to end-run regular legislative processes and slipped into the final budget bill a new anti-choice policy known as the Federal Refusal Clause. This provision is a gag rule which allows healthcare companies to silence doctors and deny women both services and information. Anti-choice legislators claim that this legislation merely protects health care workers from being forced to participate in abortions. This is not true. This provision would allow health care companies to refuse to counsel women about abortions or even provide referrals to other doctors. Kellie Copeland, Executive Director of NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio said, “Passage of the Federal Refusal Clause is disgraceful, especially when you consider that it was done on a Saturday without benefit of even one hearing. America’s women deserve better.” Also in this appropriations bill, Congress increased funding for unproven abstinence-only programs by $30 million while only adding $10 million in funding for Title X family planning programs. Copeland continued, “American families should be outraged that our leaders in Washington are increasing spending on abstinence-only programs that don’t teach our kids how to protect themselves from AIDS, other sexually transmitted diseases or unintended pregnancies. Congress should be promoting comprehensive sex education and family planning programs that give our kids the facts they need to make their reproductive health-care decisions throughout their lifetimes.” Contact: Kellie Copeland 216-283-2180 ###
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