AP/Houston Chronicle Examines Debate On Initiative That Aims To Reduce Number Of Unintended Pregnancies, Abortions

Main Category: Abortion
Also Included In: Pregnancy / Obstetrics;  Sexual Health / STDs
Article Date: 13 Jun 2007 - 6:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

The AP/Houston Chronicle on Thursday examined the debate concerning the so-called "prevention first" initiative, a package of legislation that aims to reduce the need for abortions by reducing the number of unintended pregnancies.

According to proponents of the initiative, providing better information about contraceptives and expanding access to them are methods that could reduce unintended pregnancies and subsequent abortions. Opponents of the initiative believe it is an "alarming effort to eliminate abstinence-only sex education, strengthen abortion-rights groups and encourage sex outside of marriage," the AP/Chronicle reports.

The "centerpiece" of the initiative is a bill (S 21), sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), that would expand Medicaid and private health insurance coverage to include contraceptives and require hospitals to make emergency contraception available to rape survivors. The measure, called the Prevention First Act, also would allocate funds for comprehensive sex education programs that teach youth about contraception, as well as abstinence.

Another measure (HR 2596, S 1555) in the package would require pharmacies to provide women access to contraceptives (Crary, AP/Houston Chronicle, 6/7). The measure, introduced last week by Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Frank Lautenburg (D-N.J.), also would make it illegal for a pharmacy to refuse to fill a birth control prescription and for a pharmacist to "intimidate, threaten or harass customers" or "intentionally breach, or threaten to breach, medical confidentiality," according to a Maloney release (Maloney release, 6/6).

According to the AP/Chronicle, groups that support abortion rights -- including Planned Parenthood Federation of America and NARAL Pro-Choice America -- are advocating for similar legislation at the state level. Colorado and Washington earlier this year passed laws barring abstinence-only sex education in public schools, and five states -- Arkansas, Connecticut, Colorado, Minnesota and Oregon -- passed laws requiring hospitals to provide EC or information about the drug to rape survivors.

Comments
According to supporters of the initiative, the measures are a way to reach a "common ground" in the debate over abortion, the AP/Chronicle reports. Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-N.Y.), sponsor of the House version of the Prevention First Act, on Thursday at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., said that the measures would "give women the tools they need to make the best possible decisions for themselves."

Critics of the measures said a true compromise would include support for abstinence outside of marriage. Supporters of the initiative "say they're searching for common ground, but it's more likely they're looking for more funding for Planned Parenthood," Tom McClusky, vice president for government affairs at the Family Research Council, said. Janice Crouse of Concerned Women for America, which opposes the initiative, said, "There's a utopian view that women ought to be able to have sex any time they want to without consequences -- that's the bottom line of all these bills."

Sarah Brown, head of the National Campaign, said to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies "is very simple -- you either don't have sex or you use contraception carefully, every single time." She added, "If we talk about personal responsibility, as well as responsible policies, we may then be building common ground" (AP/Houston Chronicle, 6/7).

"Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

• Additional
• References
• Citations