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Board Chair Dr. Nancy Stanwood responded today to the addition of a rape and incest exception to H.R. 1797, a resolution that would criminalize abortions 20 weeks after fertilization, introduced by Representative Trent Franks:
“Abortion opponents in the House of Representatives claim to care about women. Yet H.R. 1797 at its core disregards the well-being and dignity of women. It still lacks a critical exception to protect a woman’s health. ….[This revision] creates an exception for rape survivors, but it mandates that a woman who has been raped report the attack to law enforcement. Rape is grossly underreported and women’s reasons for not reporting are complex and understandable. Many women fear reprisal from their attacker and are intimidated by the reporting process. My patients have felt that they would not get justice and just wanted to put the trauma behind them. H.R. 1797 still suffers from ignorance and a profound lack of compassion.”
Read the entire press release here. Read More
We applaud the Administration’s decision to drop its attempts to block sales of Plan B One-Step emergency contraception without age restriction. Removing barriers to this time-sensitive medication will increase access not only for younger women but also for people of all ages without access to government-issued identification.
Our Board Chair Dr. Nancy Stanwood said: “We are relieved that the Administration has finally listened to science and medicine and that women of all ages will have access to emergency contraception. For over a decade, Physicians has endorsed an end to the unfounded and harmful age restrictions on this safe and effective medication….Today is a milestone for reproductive health.”