SB 371 which adds more burdens to reproductive rights moved closer to passage today by passing second reading in the second chamber. Several amendments were rejected:
Amendment 5 by Rep. Errington was rejected 30-61. It would have added to the list of things that the State has in its “informed consent” brochure. Currently the brochure has pictures of the fetus, scary stuff about what can happen if you have an abortion, and an announcement that the biological dad is on the hook for child support. Rep. Errington would have added to that, “A statement that contraceptives are available at federally qualified health centers, Planned Parenthood clinics, and other health care clinics at no cost or at a reduced cost.” But, 60 Representatives did not want that to appear in the brochure; notwithstanding the fact that increased use of birth control will reduce unwanted pregnancies and abortions. Leads me to believe that the consequence free sex is just as objectionable as abortion to a number of legislators.
Amendment 6, also by Rep. Errington was rejected 25 – 67. It would have removed from the definition of “abortion clinic” a physicians office that primarily dispenses “abortion inducing drugs” (defined as “a medicine, drug, or substance prescribed or dispensed with the intent of terminating a clinically diagnosable pregnancy with the knowledge that the termination will, with reasonable likelihood, cause the death of the fetus.”) The abortion clinic tag means that the physician’s office gets stuck with the abortion clinic requirements – a bunch of specifications as to the physical plant the office has to have. Nevermind that the physician is allowed to dispense other drugs without all the small government interference.
Amendment 7 by Rep. Lawson would have removed the requirement that the doctor providing the abortion or his/her designee be available 24/7 for followup care. It was defeated on a voice vote.
Rep. Austin’s Amendment 8 was ruled out of order. It would have prohibited a school corporation, charter school, or private school receiving public funds from kicking a student out for being pregnant or interfering with her ability to attend class during regular hours.
Rep. Vandenburgh’s Amendment 1 was also ruled out of order. It would have imposed a lot of restrictions on prescribing erectile dysfunction drugs — just as disingenuously concerned about men’s health as the main bill is about women’s health.
Rep. Pelath also had Amendment 12 which was ruled out of order. I don’t have time to parse it at the moment – something to do with tax credits and an equal pay committee.
Abortion prevalence in the U.S. is around 22 or 23 per 100,000. In countries where it’s “prohibited”–in South America–it’s 30, 40 and 50 per 100,000. Countries that allow abortions and don’t invest in family planning, etc. (e.g. former Communist countries and other disorganized places), it’s really high–well above 50. In the Netherlands and Belgium, where abortion is legal but family planning, sex education and birth control are readily available, it’s 4 per 100,000. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to let that data guide legislation, but Americans think prohibition will solve all problems until it’s implemented, then we discover that prohibition produces more problems than it solves. If the legislature really wanted to cut down abortions, do what Belgium and the Netherlands do. Now if one is a demagogue and wants to make a big ideology points, follow Indiana’s legislature. Now there is always the option to stop people from having sex. In that case, good luck.
Why does the Indiana GOP place no value on the sanctity of human life? Is it because they hate women and children?
They only care about you before birth and after brain death. Anything in between and you can go screw yourself.
Amy, you can only screw in GOP land if you are straight, married, and don’t expect TANF or Medicaid for your children.
Stuart—What is the source for your stats? My question is not confrontational. I would like the information and to read the sources. Thanks.
Guttmacher Institute. It’s the best and most reliable source I could find. You might have to look around for a minute or two to find the page with all the data, but it’s there. Thanks for asking.
I found the exact page that I used, and I think I can safely say that it’s not an ideological page, but a good faith effort to simply tell what is. I hope that this will only be the start for people, because I didn’t mention the whole problem of unsafe abortions and other important issues, and how it’s a demonstration of how ignorance and ideology drives decisions with terrible consequences. I am no fan of abortion, but I am also not a fan of ideology-driven stupid decisions.
http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/journals/25s3099.html
Clearly, this state legislature (and many others, really) are competing to see just how big an asshole it can be before anyone starts caring (or stops cheering).
Our legislature, and others, seem to be playing their own North Korean style brinkmanship games: How far can we go before people get wise to us and cut off our water to challenge outrageous attempts at catering to a minority that doesn’t seem to know very much but who loudly and confidently broadcast their ignorance?