Tag: NARAL

A Tri-City Herald report examines the DSHS budget cuts that will eliminate 55 family planning nurses, interviewing a nurse who will lose her job and a young woman with two children who is one of the 900 low-income Tri-City residents that will lose access to family planning care.

A New Mexico woman is suing a nurse and health care clinic in federal court after she had her IUD device removed against her wishes by an anti-choice nurse who proceeded to lecture the patient on her choice of contraception after removing it: (via Courthousenews.com).

On Barack Obama's change.gov website visitors can vote on which issues they would like the new president to address; currently ending funding for ineffective abstinence only sex education ranks fourth on the list.

Cristina Page writes a critical piece on the HHS "conscience clause" regulation, which goes into effect tomorrow, discussing some of the organizations that are working to overturn the regulation and lawsuits that could restrict implementation of the rule via injunction: (via RH Reality Check).

NARAL Pro-Choice America has released their annual "Who Decides?" state-by-state guide on the status of reproductive rights and access around the country.

U.S. News and World Report writer Deborah Katz discusses the startling lack of research into whether women over 35 should take birth control pills, noting that most doctors believe if you are free from risk-factors such as high cholesterol it is probably safe.

President Bush declared yesterday to be "Sanctity of Human Life Day", proclaiming his belief that "all human life is a gift from our creator that is sacred...each person, including every person waiting to be born, has a special place and purpose in this world": (via Politico.com).

Amie Newman of RH Reality Check criticizes a recent Atlantic article by Ross Douthat on Planned Parenthood where he unconvincingly argues that Planned Parenthood provides more abortion than it says, does not reduce unintended pregnancy and does not deserve to receive tax money for its STI and unplanned pregnancy prevention work.

On Huffington Post, women's health care advocate Kirsten Moore discusses future HHS Secretary Tom Daschle's support of the Federal Employees Health Benefits program, which may be a way for the government to help the uninsured afford health insurance, saying he should work to rescind the ban on coverage of abortion care if the program is to be implemented.

An RH Reality Check article examines the "adoption consensus", a middle ground that both sides of the abortion debate supposedly agree on, saying that while we ought to work to make adoption easier for those who choose it, doing so will not reduce the number of abortions.

New York City councilmember Christine Quinn introduced a bill, which is expected to pass, that would extend the rights of abortion clinic workers and patients against harassment from protestors outside of clinics, after NARAL Pro-Choice New York informed her of the problem happening at a number of area health centers: (via NY Times).

Despite Vatican objections, next month the RU-486 abortion pill will be made available to women in Italy through prescription by a doctor in a hospital, a decision that was made by the previous, more liberal government in February but cannot be overturned by the current, more conservative administration: (via Times Online).

NARAL Pro-Choice New York President Kelli Conlin writes in the Albany Times-Union that an important task lies ahead for Gov. David Paterson in appointing a new senator to replace Hillary Clinton, and that her successor ought to be as passionate about using the Senate to advocate for women as Clinton has been.

President Bush is expected to announce the "right of conscience" rule allowing any employee in a health care facility that receives federal money to deny care based on personally held beliefs, which proponents such as the Christian Medical Association and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops say extends to birth control and artificial insemination: (via Seattle Times).

A San Francisco Chronicle article highlights the several treaties President-Elect Obama may seek to have ratified as president, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, which has been ratified by every other industrialized nation and was signed by President Carter in 1980 but has never made it to the U.S. Senate.

An RH Reality Check article discusses the intersection between natural disasters and the extra reproductive health care difficulties faced by women during them, noting the need for increased training and access to reproductive health care resources during times of crisis.

The anti-abortion group, Christian Defense Coalition, is planning to gather activists to sidewalk chalk Pennsylvania Avenue with "pro-life messages and pictures" to greet the Obamas at the White House: (via Colorado Independent).

A new Spanish radio ad launched for World AIDS Day yesterday aimed at Catholics promotes a message that "good Catholics use condoms", focusing on a Catholic person's responsibility to care for loved ones by protecting themselves and others: (via RH Reality Check).

RH Reality Check reports that Sarah Palin's nomination has reenergized conservatives wishing to outlaw abortion and has the potential to again polarize the healthy discussion that has developed about working together to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies.

The RH Reality Check commentary also calls out a Wall Street Journal report on double-standard employed by the Catholic church which grills Catholics like Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden about their faith and voting records, while failing to examine John McCain and Sarah Palin's anti-choice credentials.

NARAL Pro-Choice America has launched its first video in a planned series showing just how extreme and radical the McCain-Palin ticket is when it comes to a woman's right to choose. The video showcases the candidates' own remarks on choice, including their opposition to Roe v. Wade.

RH Reality Check reports that Sarah Palin's nomination has reenergized conservatives wishing to outlaw abortion and has the potential to again polarize the healthy discussion that has developed about working together to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies.

The RH Reality Check commentary also calls out a Wall Street Journal report on double-standard employed by the Catholic church which grills Catholics like Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden about their faith and voting records, while failing to examine John McCain and Sarah Palin's anti-choice credentials.

NARAL Pro-Choice America has launched its first video in a planned series showing just how extreme and radical the McCain-Palin ticket is when it comes to a woman's right to choose. The video showcases the candidates' own remarks on choice, including their opposition to Roe v. Wade.

Karen Cooper, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Washington, issued a statement on the selection noting that Senator Biden has consistently expressed support for a woman's right to choose and has a strong record of opposing judicial nominees with hostile anti-choice records.

The Seattle Times editorializes against the Bush administration's HHS proposal, saying that it is an unnecessary change that "isn't solving a problem as much as it is taking an 11th-hour stand against choice".  

Norman Gant, executive director of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology has publicly released his organization's response to the HHS proposal, noting that it seems that the HHS is willfully misinterpreting ABOG certification rules in order to justify the new regulations.

An anonymous author has started blogging about the process of terminating her pregnancy, after searching the Web for abortion blogs and finding only anti-choice propaganda.  

Broadsheet comments that, given that abortion is still taboo in pop culture, it's not surprising that bloggers have previously avoided the subject and commends the author for opening this dialogue.  

ABC News reports on new studies by Gynuity and Ibis Reproductive Health to research how many women undergo non-medically supervised abortions and why, highlighting the need to improve communication of reproductive rights and address barriers to reproductive health care.

Women's eNews reports on the increased role of women at the Democratic National Convention.

The New York Times reports on the difficulties faced by Mexico City's government in increasing access to abortion services in a country with obstructive conscience clauses, which may foreshadow future problems in United States as refusal rules such as those recently proposed by the HHS are implemented.

The New York Times' Judith Warner agrees, saying that abortion opponents who hoped to gain ground with the Democrats are frustrated that the Platform does not provide additional ammunition for a moral debate.  

Nancy Keenan, President of NARAL Pro-Choice America, responds to John McCain's comments that he has not ruled out a pro-choice vice president, noting that the president is the one who sets policy and will nominate a Supreme Court justice (via Huffington Post)

A new study from the Guttmacher Institute says that the percentage of U.S. women using contraception has increased from 36% in 1995 to 41% in 2002, with one quarter of them obtaining contraceptive services used publicly funded clinics (via Washington Post).

RH Reality Check analyzes McCain's latest ads which seeks to portray Obama's popularity with young female voters as a negative, commenting that McCain's stance on reproductive rights was already dismissive of young women and his latest ads assume that he has already lost their vote.

Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm is expected to veto a late-term abortion ban passed earlier this week by the state Senate (via RH Reality Check).

An abstinence-only organization whose founder and owner is a close personal friend of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention's chief administrator, has received a federal grant of over a million dollars - twice what it had requested - despite ranking lower than competing organizations and refusing to participate in a congressionally mandated study (via abc News).  

Analysts point out the likelihood of the next president appointing a Supreme Court justice, noting that both Obama and McCain most frequently address the issue of judicial appointments in the context of abortion rights (via Seattle Post-Intelligencer).

Columnist Ellen Goodman tells disappointed Clinton supporters not to `get mad, to get even' and support Obama while working on leveling the field for the next female candidate by boycotting misogynistic mainstream media, supporting female candidates at the local level, and making complacent candidates work for women's votes (via The Seattle Times).

RH Reality Check reports that Californians will vote, for the third time, on a parental notification measure approved for the November ballot.  

NARAL Pro-Choice New York and its coalition partners have produced an excellent video explaining the importance of New York's Reproductive Health Act which would protect women's reproductive health rights no matter what happens with Roe (via Daily Kos).  

Consumer complaints claim that some insurers deny individual health coverage to women who have had caesarean sections because they believe these women are likely to undergo the procedure if they become pregnant again (via New York Times).

The Arizona Board of Nursing has approved a recommendation that nurse practitioners with special training be permitted to perform abortions up to the 13th week of pregnancy, however anti-choice lawmakers are proposing legislation that may negate the Board's ruling (via The Arizona Star).

Beginning in 2009, states will have to pay for "Jane Doe" rape kits, which remain anonymous and sealed unless the victim decides to press charges. Currently most states refuse to cover the cost of a forensic rape exam unless the victim files a police report, deterring many victims from coming forward (via Associated Press).

This action flies in the face of sanity in that the pro-choice movement is seen as stabbing its friends in the back...a friend named Hillary Clinton.

Their action created a firestorm last night on the NARAL Blog and many others have come forward to disagree vehemently with NARAL's ill-chosen action.

Abortion providers have alot to thank the Clintons for, as the Clinton administration did everything it their power to protect abortion rights and use their Justice Department under Janet Reno to protect the lives of providers.

While RH Reality Check exposes McCain's shrouded threats to criminalize contraception.

Pro-choice activists warn that a proposed Colorado ballot initiative that would define a fertilized embryo as a person could lead to disastrous consequences for reproductive health in the state, such as banning non-barrier methods of birth control or establishing a legal basis for the government to investigate a woman and her doctor for a miscarriage (via Denver Post).  

Prominent evangelicals urge Christian conservatives to distance themselves from single-issue politics, angering leaders on the religious right who have close ties to the Republican Party (via Seattle Times).