Forgetting their election promises of job creation, strengthening the economy, and passing a fiscally responsible budget, anti-choice legislator’s this session focused on attacking women’s health care. But it didn’t work. In all, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Virginia worked to defeat 14 anti-choice bills that threatened access to reproductive health care, prevention services, and the perennial attempt to defund Planned Parenthood. However, with your help we worked to defeat all but one bill! Here’s how we did it:
- We defeated the so-called ‘personhood’ bill, House Bill 1. This bill would have had far reaching and dangerous consequences- laying the legal foundation to ban abortion and contraception in the Commonwealth. On February 23rd, during our Virginia Pro-Choice Day of Action, ‘personhood’ was passed out of the Senate Education and Health committee. Then, while we were calling our senators and supporters and rallying on this issue, this bill was defeated on the Senate floor with a vote to carry the bill over to 2013! (Check out photos of supporters taking action!) This wouldn't have been possible without your passion and dedication!
- We ALSO defeated House Bill 62, which would have repealed coverage to Medicaid-eligible women who need abortion care because something has gone terribly wrong with their pregnancy. This legislation targeted the most vulnerable population of women in the Commonwealth - low-income or uninsured women on Medicaid would have been forced to carry a pregnancy to term or pay for doctor recommended care out of pocket. During our Day of Action we called key supporters and gave them the opportunity to make their voices heard on HB 62 – and the bill was passed by indefinitely!
- Lastly, we defeated attempts to eliminate the requirement that girls entering the 6th grade receive the human papillomavirus vaccine for school attendance. As with other immunization requirements, the HPV requirement includes an opt-out provision for parents who object to this vaccination. Since this law was enacted in October of 2008, over 65,000 young girls have accessed the HPV vaccination through the State’s immunization program. Defeating this bill was a fiscally and medically responsible decision on behalf of the Commonwealth and young girls and their families will continue to have the ability to choose whether or not to utilize the protections afforded by the vaccination.
Unfortunately, we could not defeat every bill that was introduced. As many of you now may know, HB 462 (mandatory ultrasound), has been passed by the General Assembly and was signed into law by Governor McDonnell last week. The bill is slated to take effect on July 1, 2012. HB 462 requires a woman to have an ultrasound prior to an abortion and imposes an additional mandatory waiting period. The extended delay places an undue burden on women across the state seeking safe, legal abortion care. It is truly regrettable that the General Assembly decided to, not only play politics with women’s health, but to also tell doctors how to practice medicine.
We know that without your hard work and support, the outcome would look a lot worse. THANK YOU for spending countless hours writing letters and making phone calls to your General Assembly members and working with us to contact constituents about these issues. Our efforts in the General Assembly to protect women’s reproductive health would not be possible without your support and activism throughout the year.
Thank you!
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