WoMN Focus

To say that it has been a challenging week for progressives is a bit of an understatement.  There was a defeat in Massachusets, the Citizens United ruling, and the loss of Air America.  And that doesn’t even touch on the challenges of getting any kind of comprehensive health care reform passed, let alone reform that protects women’s access to reproductive health services.

As if that were not bad enough, states like Minnesota that have made a commitment to women can anticipate a full-throttled attack on that commitment.  I provided a policy overview of what health care reform would look like in Minnesota here but want to draw attention to one point–Medicaid.  Now I know nothing puts people to sleep quite like talking about state funding vehicles, so I’ll be brief.  Minnesota is one of a handful of states that currently uses Medicaid funds to provide abortion-related services to recipients beyond the circumstances of rape and/or incest.  The funding mechanisms and the insurance exchanges put forth in federal health care reform, combined with razor-thin support for continued funding and billion-dollar state deficits makes this an easy target for “reform.”  Whatever happens with health care reform on the national level we can expect to see another assault on choice and access at the state level.  And if reform passes, expect a broader coalition of groups and legislators going after this Medicaid funding.

Many choice activists felt blindsided by the Stupak/Nelson/Hatch abortion shennanigans in the crafting of health care reform legislation.  There’s no reason why we should be as blindsided at the state level.  Consider yourself warned and let’s get prepared.

Although I haven’t spoken much lately on this site about the policies that effect women, I have been writing about reproductive health issues in other places. Most people think of reproductive rights issues as being solely about the right to terminate unwanted pregnancies. That only scratches the surface. It’s about having the right to make healthy choices for your body.

As I learned too well lately, reproductive health isn’t just about life, it’s also about loss. And, thanks to the recently passed Stupak Amendment, insurers may get to have a say in how loss will be handled as well.

This weekend, a group of male pro-life Democrats gambled with women’s health, and women lost. By broadly writing in that insurers can chose whether or not to cover “abortion services,” pro-life amendments don’t just affect their intended victims — women seeking a way out of an unwanted or medically harmful pregnancy. They also affect another group of victims — women whose pregnancies have already ended but have not yet miscarried.

I’m one of those women, and this past Halloween I had what the hospital officially termed an “abortion.”

Please, read my entire story here.

Via RHReality Check

We know from our work in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota, that the more we engage in substantive discussion about the issues that affect the health and safety of women, the more people understand and honor the complexity of the abortion issue and recognize the need to leave these personal decisions to women and families.

The truth is that many people have some level of moral ambivalence about abortion. Most South Dakotans, for example, self-identify as “pro-life” and are opposed to abortion, but they have defeated statewide measures to ban abortion in two elections. Even the most conservative Americans want to keep abortion safe, legal and rare. Why? Because abortion is a morally complicated issue, which is precisely why woman are entitled to think it through and come to their own conclusions.

It’s high time that the rest of the country follow South Dakota’s lead and stop using the divisive language of the past and start acknowledging and respecting the internal conflict felt by many voters on this issue. Acknowledging moral conflict is not something to fear, but rather, a measure of respect for an individual’s capacity to make the best decision for themselves and their families, rather than being left at the whim of government decision makers.

Read the rest of the article here.

The 2008 Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) Statistics includes summary of surveillance data for Minnesota’s reportable STDs: chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, and chancroid. In Minnesota, STDs are the most commonly reported communicable diseases and account for over 60% of all notifiable diseases reported to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH). In 2008 the number of reported bacterial STDs reached their highest level ever with 17,650 cases reported. This represents an overall increase of 3.5% from the previous year and is part of a continued trend observed over the past ten years. The change in incidence rates varied by disease, with chlamydia increasing by 7%, primary/secondary syphilis doubling, and gonorrhea decreasing by 12%.

Read full report here

(Via RH Reality Check)

In states across the country this spring, the mounting evidence condemning abstinence-only programming — studies that reveal it is ineffective and half of states rejecting federal funding for it — is having an effect on legislatures. Some states are introducing bills that would compel schools to teach comprehensive sex education, and many are stipulating that curricula be “medically accurate.” While some of the states are the usual blue state suspects, including Hawaii, New York, Minnesota, and Oregon, others are more surprising: the Indiana, Texas, North Carolina, Florida, and Utah legislatures have all introduced bills that are taking a big step toward teaching comprehensive, medically accurate sex education in schools. About 19 states total have introduced such legislation.

Read full post here

Read more from RH Reality Check here

(Via Planned Parenthood)

Yesterday, I attended Minnesota’s Pro-choice lobby day, which reiterated to me how important and vulnerable access to health care can be. These services especially benefit those who are worse off in our society and may not be able to voice their opinions. We must not forget the critical importance of choice for all, not just those who can afford it. We must speak up for those who lack a voice and write to your representatives. Appeal to their nature to lift up our society and help those who are most in need. Write and tell them how important access to affordable women’s health care and family planning is to their voters and districts. Share a story of when access to affordable and open women’s health care was important to you. Your representatives are there to represent and promote your needs. It is easier to care and fight for a cause when you have a personal story you can relate to it. Make sure your representatives know those stories too.

Read full post here