TruthOut10
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- Dec 3, 2012
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The lame-duck state Legislature rammed right-to-work legislation into Michigan law in just five days. Now, the same merry band is poised to gut women's reproductive rights.
Two bills that would dramatically change the way women obtain birth control and other reproductive services have been wending their way to Gov. Rick Snyder's desk. They'll soon be joined by another, aimed at restricting access to abortion.
The state House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday that would mandate new licensing and insurance requirements for facilities that perform abortions, as well as screening to ensure that those seeking abortions aren't being coerced. Proponents say the requirements are meant to protect women's health, but they're clearly intended to thin the ranks of abortion providers by increasing costs and increasing burdensome regulations on those who run clinics that provide abortions.
The number of abortion providers in Michigan already is dropping. According to Planned Parenthood Mid and South Michigan, there are now just 32 providers statewide, compared with 48 when the Guttmacher Institute last counted in 2008. If Snyder signs the bill passed Wednesday, that number will surely continue to drop, erecting new barriers to Michigan women who choose to exercise their constitutional right to an abortion.
Editorial: Women next on lame-duck Legislature's hit list | Editorials | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
Two bills that would dramatically change the way women obtain birth control and other reproductive services have been wending their way to Gov. Rick Snyder's desk. They'll soon be joined by another, aimed at restricting access to abortion.
The state House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday that would mandate new licensing and insurance requirements for facilities that perform abortions, as well as screening to ensure that those seeking abortions aren't being coerced. Proponents say the requirements are meant to protect women's health, but they're clearly intended to thin the ranks of abortion providers by increasing costs and increasing burdensome regulations on those who run clinics that provide abortions.
The number of abortion providers in Michigan already is dropping. According to Planned Parenthood Mid and South Michigan, there are now just 32 providers statewide, compared with 48 when the Guttmacher Institute last counted in 2008. If Snyder signs the bill passed Wednesday, that number will surely continue to drop, erecting new barriers to Michigan women who choose to exercise their constitutional right to an abortion.
Editorial: Women next on lame-duck Legislature's hit list | Editorials | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
