Another day, another abortion restriction

The right to a safe and legal abortion was determined in a Supreme Court case over 40 years ago and has been supported in more recent court cases like Planned Parenthood v. Casey and Whole Women’s Health v. Hellerstedt. Despite this, representatives continue to use time and taxpayer resources to restrict abortion access. This week alone, we’ve seen:

• The Wisconsin State assembly voted to prevent health insurance for abortion coverage for state employees. In addition to the restrictive bill, Republican Representative Scott Allen said, “Labor force shortages are tied to population declines. Labor force shortages are a limiting factor in economic growth. And limited economic growth poses a problem when government tries to pay for public services and infrastructure. In spite of this Mr. Speaker, ironically, the democrats continue their effort to support the abortion industry.” Suggesting that women should be forced to carry pregnancies in order to support the labor force.
• House Republicans hold a hearing for a six week abortion ban. In a stunt, Republican Representative Steve King from Iowa brought in a sonogram machine and proceeded to narrate a sonogram. However, he failed to mention that the sonogram he chose to speak over was significantly more developed than six weeks.
• In another anti-choice move from House Republicans, they added in language to suggest unborn children can have college savings accounts. While less blatant than other attacks from the anti-choice community, this move is another attempt to establish personhood at conception.

The right for a woman to have complete control over her reproductive choices is directly tied to both her medical and economic future. As this right continues to come under attack, we need to be even more vigilant in educating the public on how to access safe reproductive care. SASS plays an important role in helping make sure women are aware of their full range of options and to make sure all decisions are still in their hands.