Posts Tagged ‘Abortion Coverage’

Opt-out for STD testing and treatment for unmarried patients for the Abstinence Until Marriage supporters?

Opt-out for Obesity related diseases for fitness fantatics who believe obesity results from a lack of will power ?

Opt-out for prenatal care for Zero Population Growth proponents?

Opt-out for all medical intervention for “God’s Will” Congregants who believe in prayer alone?

Opt-out for sports-related injuries for those who don’t approve of organized sports?

We’ve written several posts tracking the disturbing trend of NC county and municipal governments cherry-picking what reproductive health care services they want to cover and subsequently voting to eliminate abortion coverage for their employees. For these employees, July first marked much more than a new fiscal year. For employees in the counties and towns that voted to eliminate coverage of abortion care, yesterday also meant the first day that they were without comprehensive reproductive health care.

Check out this blog post written by our friend at Planned Parenthood Health Systems and NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina with a perspective on the divisive “wedge-issue” politics that are making their way into local governments across the state.

Today is the beginning of a new fiscal year. To many, the first day of July is primarily of financial significance. But for some municipal employees in North Carolina, today marks a new limit on their Constitutional right to choose abortion.

Vehement anti-choice state Rep. Paul Stam provoked local elected officials across the state — from Apex to Gastonia and Pitt County to Lincoln County — to remove abortion coverage from governmental employee health plans. Many municipalities made this change in their new budgets effective today. While some city and county managers made the decision to cut off benefits for their employees, others decided to put the coverage to a vote. How many of them would want their private medical issues debated in a public forum? (links added by Choice 2.0)

Read the rest of the story here. (Cross-posted from our partners at the Progressive Pulse)

Recently the Senate Armed Services Committee voted to lift a discriminatory and dangerous ban on privately funded abortion care for women serving in the military overseas.

This was a huge victory for America’s servicewomen and for women’s health. Since 1995, this ban prohibited a woman serving overseas from receiving abortion care in the military hospital on base where she would normally access health care services. As a result, the ban meant that a servicewoman was forced to venture out to a local medical facility in the foreign country where she is stationed to obtain an abortion. In many countries where U.S. servicewomen are stationed, abortion care is inadequate, unsafe or altogether unavailable.

The amendment passed by the Senate Armed Services Committee overturns this dangerous and unjust ban and simply allows a servicewoman to use her private dollars to pay for an abortion at the secure military hospital where she currently receives care.

Senator Roland Burris (D-IL) proposed the amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that repealed the ban on privately funded abortion services for U.S. servicewomen serving overseas.

Senator Kay Hagan serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee and voted in favor of the amendment that lifted the long-standing ban on privately funded abortion care for servicewomen.

Senator Hagan needs to hear that her constituents are behind her and that we want her to continue to stand up to protect women’s health. Take action and let her know that you appreciate her vote!

As you may have read about in an earlier blog posting, anti-choicers in North Carolina have been trying out a new tactic in their fight to restrict women’s rights. They’ve been attempting to convince town councils and county commissioners to strip abortion coverage out of insurance plans for town and county employees. This initiative has, unfortunately, met with some success. State House Republican Leader Paul Stam has led the fight for the anti-choicers, citing a case he argued in front of the state Supreme Court in 1981.

Recently, the Carrboro Board of Alderman took up the issue and, as you might expect if you’re familiar with Carrboro and its citizens, passed an altogether awesome resolution. What did it say? Well, it was so fantastic, that I’m going to quote a fair chunk of it:

“Section 1. The Board of Alderman rejects this intrusive suggestion of N.C.Rep. Paul Stam, relying on a misinterpretation of the holding of Stam v. North Carolina and other hypotheses, that municipalities “must refuse to fund medically unnecessary abortions.”

Section 2. The Board of Aldermen continues to support a woman’s constitutional right to privacy, pursuant to the law of the land as articulated by our United States Supreme Court.

Section 3. The Board of Aldermen resolves that the Town of Carrboro will endeavor to provide Town employees with health insurance coverage that covers the full range of reproductive services.”

That’s right. Carrboro’s town council went out of their way to pass a resolution upholding a woman’s right to choose. One of the things I think we’re often guilty of in this movement (or, at least, one of the things I’m definitely guilty of) is focusing on the negative, and glossing over the positive. So I want to pause here and take a minute to say thank you. Thanks to the Carrboro Board of Alderman for passing this resolution. Thanks for standing up to those who distort truths and bully elected officials. And thanks for reaffirming your commitment to reproductive rights and choice. I’m proud to be your constituent.

You can read the whole resolution here. And if you’d like to send an email to the Board thanking them, click here for contact info.