PHA-Exch> White House defines- Contraception as Abortion

[Kamayani]

 WASHINGTON LOOKOUT


* White House Defines Contraception as Abortion

By Allison Stevens - Washington Bureau Chief*

WASHINGTON (WOMENSENEWS)--Reproductive rights advocates issued a collective
condemnation Tuesday of a draft proposal by the Bush administration to set
new restrictions on domestic family planning programs.

Under the draft proposal, federally funded hospitals and clinics that
provide family planning services would be required to promise in writing
that they will turn a blind eye to health care providers' views on abortion
and certain kinds of birth control, such as emergency contraception.

The proposed rule defines abortion as "any of the various
procedures--including the prescription, dispensing and administration of any
drug or the performance of any procedure or any other action--that results
in the termination of the life of a human being in utero between conception
and natural birth, whether before or after implantation."

Organizations that do not comply would forfeit financial aid distributed by
the Department of Health and Human Services.

If implemented, the regulations could make it more difficult for many to
access information about abortion and birth control and obtain supplies and
services, said Mary Jane Gallagher, president of the National Family
Planning and Reproductive Health Association in Washington, D.C. The
regulation could also undermine state laws ensuring access to birth control,
she said. And it would redefine abortion so that it includes certain kinds
of birth control methods, setting a dangerous precedent.

"I've been around about 30 years and I've never seen anything quite this
widely imposed," Gallagher said.

If implemented, the rule would require family planning programs at hospitals
and clinics to hire people even if they oppose abortion or birth control. In
other words, health care providers would have the right to refuse to provide
patients with comprehensive information about abortion or birth control even
if they ask for it.

Providers could also refuse to write prescriptions for birth control or
provide referrals for abortion services based on their personal beliefs,
adding to a trend that is already reflected in litigation involving
pharmacists around the country who argue religious freedoms in their refusal
to dispense emergency contraception.

"Women's ability to manage their own health care is at risk of being
compromised by politics and ideology," said Cecile Richards, president of
the New York-based Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

Freedom to Speak Against Abortion

Religious conservatives and anti-choice activists hailed the proposed
regulation as a way to protect medical professionals' constitutional right
to freedom of speech and religious expression.

"Health care professionals must be free to follow their individual
conscientious convictions on these life-and-death matters," said Dr. David
Stevens, chief executive officer of Christian Medical and Dental
Associations, a 13,000-member group in Bristol, Tenn., in a letter to
Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt.

"The regulations reportedly under consideration at Health and Human Services
apparently would simply protect the right for all health care professionals
to make professional judgments based on moral convictions and ethical
standards. Protecting this right also protects patients who choose their
physicians based on life-affirming values."

A Health and Human Services spokesperson declined to respond to critics'
complaints, but said Congress has enacted similar freedom-of-conscience laws
in the past.

Critics say the regulation would have far-reaching implications.

Organizations that don't comply with the proposed rule could be forced to
scale back services due to lack of funding, leaving women who rely on
government-funded family-planning clinics with fewer options for affordable
services and supplies, Richards said. That would compound their financial
difficulties at a time of rising rates of unemployment and higher costs for
food and fuel.

Superceding States' Policies

The regulation could also undermine state laws that require hospitals to
provide emergency contraception to rape victims and that require health care
insurance plans to cover contraceptives if they cover other prescription
medications, according to NARAL Pro-Choice America, an abortion rights lobby
in Washington, D.C.

Leavitt is also exploring other options to protect health care providers,
the Health and Human Services spokesperson said. Leavitt, for example,
recently sent letters to the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology in
Washington, D.C., expressing concern over policies that "may have forced
providers to choose between compromising their personal beliefs and facing
economic and professional sanctions."

The freedom-of-conscience proposal--currently in draft form--awaits final
approval from the administration. If that occurs, the administration would
then file the proposal with the Federal Register, which would trigger a
30-day public comment period.

In that event, Planned Parenthood, the National Family Planning and
Reproductive Health Association and other advocacy groups will launch a
public relations campaign to drum up opposition to the proposed rule in the
hopes of preventing the administration from implementing the change before
it leaves office in January.

Advocates are also considering legal strategies to fight implemented
regulations in court.

"Planned Parenthood will not stand by and watch the Bush administration deny
quality, affordable health care and accurate information to millions of
women," Richards said.

Blocking Birth Control Access

If implemented, the proposal could expand on efforts by professionals in the
health care industry who hold anti-choice views to block access to birth
control.

In addition to the pharmacist refusals, anti-choice activists backed an
effort by the Bush administration to delay a decision on whether to give
emergency contraception over-the-counter status. The administration gave
women's rights advocates a partial victory in 2006 when it agreed to make
emergency contraception available without a prescription to women 18 and
older but not to younger women, often those who need it the most.

Anti-choice advocates want Bush to go further by reinstating the so-called
domestic gag rule before he leaves office.

In May, the Family Research Council, an advocacy group in Holland, Mich.,
sent a letter to the administration urging it to reinstate the rule, which
would bar U.S. family planning clinics from receiving federal aid if they
provide abortions or abortion counseling among their services. It would
mimic a current ban on federal funding for overseas clinics that offer
similar counseling and services.

News of Bush's latest proposal surfaced in a report in the New York Times on
Tuesday, one week after Carly Fiorina, an adviser to presidential candidate
Sen. John McCain, said she supported legislation to require insurance
companies to cover contraception. McCain has voted against the legislation.

When asked by a Los Angeles Times reporter about Fiorina's statement, McCain
squirmed: "It's something that I had not thought much about."

The answer prompted NARAL'S Keenan to urge support for McCain's Democratic
rival, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

"McCain's straight-talk express seems to hit a speed bump when asked about
his votes against family planning and birth control," Keenan said. "Today's
news only underscores why we need to elect pro-choice Sen. Barack Obama as
our next president."

Allison Stevens is Washington bureau chief at Women's eNews.

-- 
We have to start looking at the world through women's eyes' how are human
rights, peace and development defined from the perspective of the lives of
women? It's also important to look at the world from the perspective of the
lives of diverse women, because there is not single women's view, any more
than there is a single men's view."
-- Charlotte Bunch

Adv Kamayani Bali Mahabal
South Asia Advocacy Coordinator
Women's Health and Rights Advocacy Partnership (WHRAP)
Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre For Women (ARROW)
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
website: http://www.arrow.org.my
Mobile-00919820749204
skype:lawyercumactivist
icq-lawyercumactivist
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