Posts filed under 'abortion'
Louisiana
| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | June 6, 2006 |
Louisiana Legislature, Governor Give Green Light to Criminal Ban on Abortion
Washington, DC— Today, Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, issued the following statement in response to the Louisiana legislature’s passage of a bill to ban abortion. The ban, intended to take effect if Roe v. Wade is overturned, would outlaw abortion in Louisiana in nearly all circumstances. The action comes less than three months after Gov. Mike Rounds (R-SD) of South Dakota signed into law a ban on abortion that supporters touted as a direct challenge to Roe.
“The Louisiana legislature’s vote to criminalize abortion and Gov. Kathleen Blanco’s (D-LA) recent statement that she would refuse to veto this attack on privacy is the next step in a campaign led by extreme anti-choice groups and their allies to overturn Roe v. Wade.”
“Louisiana’s legislators and Gov. Blanco are following South Dakota’s example which underscores that any assault on freedom and privacy has implications for all 50 states. And another 11 states have considered or are considering similar bans. This egregious attack on women’s freedom and privacy will not go unanswered. We call on voters to remember in November which elected officials stood up for our freedom, and which ones voted to allow politicians to invade our most private medical decisions.”
This latest episode also exposed that, in addition to criminalizing abortion, Louisiana’s politicians rejected a measure to improve women’s access to birth control. Last week, the Louisiana House defeated an amendment that would have allowed pharmacists to provide emergency contraception, often called the “morning-after” pill, by a vote of 22-80. Increased access to emergency contraception is essential in Louisiana, where only six percent of emergency-care facilities provide EC to patients.
BACKGROUND ON ABORTION BANS
In 1991, when Roe was under siege in much the same way it is now, Louisiana reenacted its unconstitutional pre-Roe abortion ban, which contained exceptions only for instances of rape, incest, and life endangerment, but not for other circumstances, not even to protect a woman’s health.
Before enacting a ban earlier this year to directly challenge Roe, last year South Dakota enacted a ban – similar to the bill just passed by the Louisiana legislature – intended to take effect if Roe falls.
Contact:
Ted Miller, 202.973.3032
More information concerning LA:
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All information on this post was taken from NARAL
Add comment June 17, 2006
In the Kaiser Report
Two big blows. If the LA bill passes and is signed by the governor (which she says she intends to do), it would be an even greater threat to Roe since it includes health exceptions that are more broad than the SD ones. Just wanted to make sure you all saw these.
Abortion Regulations
- Louisiana: The state House on Wednesday voted 85-17 to approve an amended measure (SB 33) that would ban abortion in the state except when the pregnancy threatens the life of the woman or could cause her severe health problems, the AP/New Orleans Times-Picayune reports (Simpson, AP/New Orleans Times-Picayune, 5/31). The amended version of the measure, sponsored by state Sen. Ben Nevers (D), would allow the procedure when there would be "permanent impairment of the function of a life-sustaining organ or organs or to prevent the substantial risk of a pregnant woman." The measure would punish doctors who perform abortions with one to 10 years in prison and fines of $10,000 to $100,000, but it would not punish women who undergo the procedure (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/19). The bill now returns to the state Senate for consideration (Anderson, New Orleans Times-Picayune, 6/1). If the state Senate gives the bill final approval, it will go to Gov. Kathleen Blanco (D) for consideration. She has said she likely will sign the ban, adding, "It's got a safety measure for extreme situations for the life of the mother and some other health issues" (KATC, 6/1). If the bill is signed, it would take effect only if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade – the 1973 Supreme Court case that effectively barred state abortion bans (AP/New York Times, 6/2).
- South Dakota: The Oglala Sioux Tribal Council on Tuesday voted to ban abortion on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and suspend Tribal President Cecelia Fire Thunder for allegedly soliciting donations on behalf of the tribe for a proposed abortion clinic without the council's approval, Keloland Television reports (KELOLAND TV, 5/31). Fire Thunder, in March in response to the approval of the South Dakota law (HB 1215) that bans abortion except to save a woman's life, said, "I will personally establish a Planned Parenthood clinic on my own land which is within the boundaries of the Pine Ridge Reservation where the state of South Dakota has absolutely no jurisdiction" (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/30). However, Fire Thunder on Tuesday said she had not intended to open a clinic that would perform the procedure but rather one that would provide family planning information and emergency and regular contraception, the AP/Black Hill Pioneer reports. A motion — which was made by a tribal council representative from the Pine Ridge District at a council meeting — to suspend Fire Thunder indefinitely failed, and the council subsequently voted to suspend her for 20 days until an impeachment hearing could be held. According to the AP/Pioneer, a group of women is planning to form a board of directors for Fire Thunder's proposed women's clinic. The women are waiting on the results of the state's abortion ban referendum and any subsequent legal challenges before continuing with the plans, according to Betty Bull Bear, one of the group's members (AP/Black Hills Pioneer, 5/31).
Add comment June 8, 2006
