FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 1, 2013
It’s Time to Put Women’s Health First
Durham, North Carolina. Last night, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted anti-choice Texas attorney general Greg Abbott’s request that will allow Texas’ new admitting privileges requirement to go into effect immediately. Local abortion providers estimate that the law will close up to 15 women’s health centers. As a result, many women will be denied access to a wide range of reproductive health care, including preventive services like cancer screenings and prenatal care.
This decision comes as North Carolina’s Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) sets out to create new restrictions on women’s health centers in North Carolina that may include admitting privileges like the ones in Texas. A new law passed this summer tasks DHHS with creating new guidelines for women’s health centers that offer abortion care. “We are calling on officials at DHHS to let women’s health–not political ideology–guide the rule-making process, ” said Suzanne Buckley, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice NC. “If Governor McCrory’s administration decides to put politics over safe, legal, and accessible health care, the consequences for North Carolina women will be devastating. Because of their political agenda, thousands of women and families could lose access to safe and affordable preventative care,” she added.
###
Contact: 919-972-848six
NC Blogs for Reproductive Rights 