Repro Rights Roundup: November 18, 2017
Welcome back to the Repro Rights Roundup!
Here are five stories from this week in women’s healthcare that we think you should be talking about.
1. First, and perhaps most importantly: late Thursday night, the Senate Finance Committee approved their version of the tax bill. This bill has a number of exciting secret ingredients, like a tax break for fetuses (featuring “personhood” language) that would be step 1 in banning abortion outright. Now that the bill is out of committee, it will be considered by the full body.
We here at the Repro Rights Roundup hope that you’re comfortable with contacting your legislators by now, but in case it bears repeating, CALL YOUR SENATORS to demand that they vote nay on any version of this bill that contains this provision. The sole purpose of personhood legislation is to take a woman’s personhood from her. Think it’s absurd that we’re having to prove that women are people? Great. So do we. Call your senator.
2. Kentucky may become the first state with no abortion clinics. The Kentucky Legislature will convene in January, so be sure to keep an eye on the Bluegrass State as winter moves along. A good resource to start with is the Kentucky Health Justice Network.
3. In Ohio, a bill banning abortion after a Down Syndrome diagnosis has passed in both houses of the General Assembly.
4. A fake, anti-choice news story was the most shared article about abortion on Facebook in 2016.
5. And because it can’t all be bad news, the Massachusetts Senate has passed a bill requiring insurers to provide no-cost contraceptives regardless of federal laws. Republican Governor Charlie Baker is expected to sign the bill. That’s a big win for Massachusetts women. We’re excited to see which states follow their lead.
Thanks for joining us at the Roundup! We’ll see you next week. Fight on.
Natalie Tyson is a contributor to A Is For. Natalie lives in Virginia, where she writes stuff, bakes stuff, and drinks a truly remarkable amount of seltzer water. You can't find her on any social media - it terrifies her - but she's glad you asked. She accepts tips.