Nationwide Abortion Ban Introduced in Senate Would Hurt Women Like Christy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, November 7, 2013
CONTACT:
Melissa Fowler
202.667.5881; 202.595.4395 (after hours/cell)
mfowler@prochoice.org
“If this bill had been passed before my pregnancy, I would have had to carry to term and give birth to a baby whom the doctors concurred had no chance of a life and would have experienced near-constant pain…The decision I made to have an abortion at almost 22 weeks was made out of love and to spare my son’s pain and suffering.”
— Testimony of Christy Zink before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice; May 23, 2013
Statement of Vicki Saporta, President and CEO of the National Abortion Federation (NAF):
Today, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham introduced a nationwide ban on abortion care after 20 weeks. This bill dangerously jeopardizes the health and well-being of women in the United States who need abortion care later in pregnancy for a variety of reasons. Legislators cannot know the circumstances of every woman and her pregnancy, and should not interfere in personal, private medical decisions.
This bill clearly disrespects women and ignores the real circumstances and complications they can face during pregnancy. Earlier this year, we brought Christy Zink to testify before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice when they considered a similar ban. Christy needed to obtain abortion care after 20 weeks when doctors found severe fetal brain anomalies, which could not have been detected earlier in her pregnancy. As Christy testified:
“…when I was 21 weeks pregnant, an MRI revealed that our baby was missing the central connecting structure of the two parts of his brain. A specialist diagnosed the baby with agenesis of the corpus callosum. What allows the brain to function as a whole was simply absent. But that wasn’t all. Part of the baby’s brain had failed to develop….In effect, our baby was also missing one side of his brain.
Our baby’s condition could not have been detected earlier in my pregnancy. Only the brain scan could have found it. The prognosis was unbearable. The decision I made to have an abortion at almost 22 weeks was made out of love and to spare my son’s pain and suffering.”
This bill would have devastating consequences for women like Christy. The decision to seek abortion care is one that is best made by a woman in consultation with her health care provider and those she chooses to involve. Congress should not pass laws that disregard the real circumstances and complications women can face during pregnancy.
To arrange an interview with Vicki Saporta or Christy Zink, please contact Melissa Fowler at 202-667-5881 ext 217 or mfowler@prochoice.org.
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The National Abortion Federation (NAF) is the professional association of abortion providers in North America. Our mission is to ensure safe, legal, and accessible abortion care, which promotes health and justice for women. Our members include private and non-profit clinics, Planned Parenthood affiliates, women’s health centers, physicians’ offices, and hospitals who together care for more than half the women who choose abortion in the U.S. and Canada each year. Our members also include public hospitals and both public and private clinics in Mexico City.