Morning Roundup: Virginia Targets Abortion Clinics

Beth Saunders

Virginia is poised to enact regulations that would close all but five abortion clinics in that state, a town in the Philippines now requires a prescription for condoms, Medicaid considers STD screenings for the elderly, and an anti-choice plea to John Boehner.

Virginia is poised to enact regulations that would close all but five abortion clinics in that state, a town in the Philippines now requires a prescription for condoms, Medicaid considers STD screenings for the elderly, and an anti-choice plea to John Boehner.

  • Yesterday, Virginia state senators voted to restrict access to first-trimester abortions by classifying any facility that performs more than five abortions a month as a hospital. The General Assembly has already approved the measure. Seventeen of the state’s 21 clinics would likely have to close if they could not conform to the new regulations, which include changes to the width of hallways and doorways, staffing requirements, and laundry and food facilities. Governor Bob McDonnell has said he will sign the bill into law.
  • A small town in the Philippines has passed an ordinance requiring condoms to be made available by prescription only. Within town limits, sex education is not permitted, nor is the sale, promotion, or endorsement of (heaven forbid!) hormonal contraception. The Catholic town declares that it,

    condemns the irresponsible and indiscriminate use of contraceptives as they undermine the solidarity of families by promoting premarital sex, giving rise to more fatherless children, more single mothers, more poverty, and more abortions when the contraceptives fail to prevent conception, and by causing a decline of legitimate marriages.

  • Health officials are weighing a decision to routinely cover sexually transmitted disease tests as preventative care under Medicare, the health care program for the elderly and disabled. The question is, why hasn’t this been routine all along?! Shocker – old people have sex!
  • An angry mob of anti-choice activists have sent a letter to Speaker John Boehner, demanding that he make defunding Planned Parenthood a priority. In fact, they believe it would be worth shutting down the government to avoid funding the nation’s largest provider of sexual health services to low and middle income Americans. “Defunding Planned Parenthood must be a non-negotiable in the Continuing Resolution and we urge you to accept nothing less than this outcome.”

Feb 25

Feb 24