On this Global Day of Action for Access to Safe and Legal Abortion, we celebrate the millions who make a decision that is the right one for them, their families, and their communities. We celebrate the providers who are committed to truly providing patient-centered care regardless of age, sexual or gender orientation, marital status, reason for abortion, or ability to pay. And we celebrate policymakers and activists who have worked tirelessly to overturn laws that criminalize and penalize women.
Wednesday serves as an important reminder that it is the basic right of every woman to be able to decide on the number and spacing of her children without having to put her health or life at risk—no matter where she lives.
In my work caring for Native American women relying on federally provided insurance in northern Arizona, I meet patients who are shocked when they learn that abortion care is not covered. They are accustomed to receiving care through the Indian Health Service and the centuries-old promise that tribes will have a special government-to-government relationship with the United States.
Equality advocates appealed a ruling that threw out a legal challenge to SB 2, a Republican-supported North Carolina law that allows magistrates and other civil servants to refuse to participate in same-sex marriages.
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) characterized abortion care as a “tragedy for any life, no matter what color,” but ultimately found as much fault with Black Americans who make the reproductive health-care decision as those who advocate on behalf of civil rights.
“While many topics deserve the candidates’ consideration—from job creation to immigration to national security—safe and reliable access to abortion is fundamental to all Americans’ ability to determine our own destinies,” pro-choice organizations wrote in a letter to debate moderator Lester Holt.
Rubio made his opposition to abortion rights a cornerstone of his failed run for the Republican nomination this election cycle, so his campaign’s suggestion that an ad highlighting his opposition to abortion rights is wrong seems curious.
“The most important myth we are working to expose is that bishops represent whatever Catholic opinion in public policy matters. We wanted to make sure everyone from all walks of life are heard,” said Sara Hutchinson Ratcliffe, domestic program director at Catholics for Choice.
A law supported by Mississippi's Republican legislators would prohibit the Division of Medicaid from reimbursing any entity that provides abortion care, maintains a facility where abortion services are performed, or is affiliated with an entity that provides abortion care.
