In recent weeks, Legal battles over mifepristone One drug used in medical abortions, often referred to as the “abortion pill,” has taken center stage. on Wednesday, A federal appeals court ruled that the pill can remain on the market while the legal cases continue, despite strict new restrictions.
After the Florida Senate approved the proposed six-week ban last week, Florida Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book protested with pro-abortion rights protesters outside the state Capitol in Tallahassee. During the protest, the Democratic lawmaker was arrested along with nearly a dozen others and charged with trespassing after refusing to leave the demonstration, police said. Guardian.
“In passing this dangerous ban, Republicans chose to ignore the pleas of women and the doctors charged with their care — including two mothers in my district who were forced to the brink of death after miscarriages due to the state’s current restrictive laws.” The book said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. “Now, things will get worse. Women have been stripped of their rights and access to life-saving health care. Women will undoubtedly die. This is not freedom.”
On top of the six-week abortion ban, the bill also allocates $25 million annually to anti-abortion pregnancy centers. Planned Parenthood has Warn people She seeks abortions, as these centers are run by “anti-abortion activists with a suspicious and harmful agenda to scare, shame, or pressure you not to have an abortion and tell lies about abortion, birth control, and sexual health.”
“Because they are not providing legitimate medical care, they are not bound by state and federal privacy laws.” He said Laura Goodhue, Executive Director of the Florida Planned Parenthood Alliance. “Floridians who mistakenly went to these centers when they needed help reported being lied to about the progress of their pregnancy to prevent them from getting an abortion elsewhere; given false information about the safety of abortion and birth control; and even calling relatives, partners, or employers to try to intimidate them.” For abortion.
Before the House vote Thursday afternoon, Democratic representatives presented more than 50 amendmentsincluding the additional proposed exceptions in addition to A an offer By State Rep. Rita Harris, who would have asked the Department of Health to conduct an annual independent financial audit of crisis pregnancy centers that receive $25 million. None of the modifications At home she passed.
Abortion advocates say that if the bill takes effect, the ban would disproportionately affect people living in rural communities, low-income people, people with disabilities, and people of color.
“This legislation will give the government more power over the bodily autonomy of Floridians and everyone in the South who have long relied on the state as a safe haven for reproductive care,” said Diamond DeLancey, director of the Black Planning Program at Planned Parenthood. From South, East and North Florida, in a statement to BuzzFeed News. “This bill will have a particularly devastating impact on Black and brown communities, who already face barriers to accessing basic health care and are already three times more likely to die during childbirth.”
“Passing this ban during Black Maternal Health Week sends a message that the state of Florida doesn’t care,” Jamara Amani, executive director of the Southern Birth Justice Network, a maternal health nonprofit, said in a statement to BuzzFeed News. on the health of mothers and people who give birth,” adding that the ban “undermines the basic human rights and dignity of pregnant women and their families.”
“As a Black woman who has survived the legacy of enslaving my ancestors as property and forced to reproduce, it is important to continue to boldly say that my body and my choices are mine — not the government,” Amani said.