April 14, 2005
Anti-abortion bill moves ahead
The anti-abortion clinic rules legislation that GOP lawmakers have been pushing is moving forward.
The Florida House voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to tighten regulation of clinics that perform second-trimester abortions, with supporters citing safety as the goal.Opponents said the intent was to erode the constitutional right to abortion and warned the measure could drive women into illegal and unsafe abortions.
The 82-27 vote, largely along party lines, sent the legislation (HB 1041) to the Senate, where a similar bill (SB 1862) has cleared one committee and is pending in a second.
Gov. Jeb Bush supports the measures, spokesman Russell Schweiss said.
The bills order creation of an array of regulations for abortion clinics, from rules about sterilizing equipment and training of employees to requirements on care after abortion. The actual regulations would be written by the state Agency for Health Care Administration.
......Mona Reis, director of a West Palm Beach abortion clinic for more than two decades, said the legislation could force abortion providers to close their doors or raise prices. She said the motivation for the bill was not women's health but antiabortion politics.
Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, said the bill was "simply hassling" women who want abortions.
If you're relatively wealthy, you may still have choices, albeit ever narrowing ones, but legislation like this, which will force many clinics to close, will really hurt poor and uninsured women who simply don't have the means to take time off of work and travel in order to have a safe, legal medical procedure.
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Posted by Norwood at April 14, 2005 05:28 AM | TrackBack