Many women and health care professionals were once again disappointed at this year’s General Assembly as the Education and Health Committee voted down a bill that would have gotten rid of the law requ
Many women and health care professionals were once again disappointed at this year’s General Assembly as the Education and Health Committee voted down a bill that would have gotten rid of the law requiring women to have an ultrasound prior to having an abortion in the Commonwealth.
The law requiring a mandatory ultrasound prior to getting an abortion was passed by Virginia’s former Gov. Bob McDonnell in 2012. It stated women are to receive either an external or trans-vaginal ultrasound 24 hours before undergoing the procedure.
Doctors performing abortions are also required to print an image of the ultrasound and offer the chance look at the image, as well as hear the “heartbeat.”
Opponents of the law see it as medically unnecessary and that it passes judgement on women who could already be in unfortunate circumstances.
Sen. Mamie Locke (D-Hampton) introduced SB 53 into this year’s assembly and spoke before the committee Thursday to try and persuade them to repeal the law.
“The law’s intended to shame and judge a woman,” Locke said. “Healthcare decisions should be between a woman, her family and her doctor, not politicians.”
Locke’s similar bill last year was also stopped in the Republican-controlled committee. Hampton Delegate Jeion A. Ward (D-92) has a similar bill in the House, HB 43, which aims to strike the language from the 2012 law off the state code all together.
Locke went on to stress that government should not play a role in a women’s choice to terminate pregnancy.
“Politicians should not interfere in private medical decisions,” she said. “You can’t make that decision for someone else, it’s just that simple.”
Locke wrapped up her speech by stating that the procedure mandated by the current law is “a measure intended to shame, judge and delay women’s access to abortion.”
Many women, physicians and other health care professionals were at the hearing to speak out against Virginia’s ultrasound law.
Karen Wells, a counselor at Richmond Medical Center for Women where they offer abortions, was next to speak before the committee.
“I’ve seen a lot of changes occur since the mandatory ultrasounds were put into place, it’s stressful for a lot of women,” she said. “Having to make the two appointments and sometimes not being [able] to return for the second appointment.”
Wells said the biggest issue was the waiting period.
“Traditionally, in the past, there was a 24 hour waiting period that just was a conversation you had to have with the clinic giving your consent,” she said. “Now [we] still do the 24 hour consent, then you have to come in after that to get an ultrasound then you have to return on the second day {for the procedure}.”
Wells said with the mandated wait time, it becomes more difficult for working women to find appointments to fit their schedules, take that extra time off of work and find childcare. In many cases, women don’t return.
“We do see patients who don’t come back because they can’t take off the time from work, they don’t want to discuss this with their employer, childcare again is an issue for a lot of women,” Wells said. “You’re talking about a doctor’s visit that could take four to five hours. This one bill just caused a lot of chaos in a situation that was already extremely stressful.”
Gail Deady, a litigation attorney for the ACLU of Virginia also spoke before the committee in favor of overturning the law.
“As you’ve heard physicians testify here, it’s not about informed consent, a trans-abdominal ultrasound shows nothing,” Deady said.
Deady said the law imposes an extra burden that makes it more difficult for a woman to get an abortion and attempts to change her mind.
“The only purpose of this law in the first place was to discourage abortion,” she said.
Removing the ultrasound requirement has been a hot button issue since the law was passed in 2012.
In March of that year, 31 people who were protesting the passed legislation were arrested on the steps of the VA Capitol. Police in riot gear were brought out to maintain the crowd of about 1,000 local citizens.
In an interview with the Texas Tribune in January 2012, President of the American Medical Association Peter Carmel, said the law is “a needless, dangerous interference with the practice of medicine by politicians.”
The hearing wasn’t just filled with advocates for Locke’s proposed bill. A few men spoke out in opposition of Locke’s legislation.
Bruce Kemp of Fairfax, an active member of The Family Foundation, said “Virginia law now allows women the opportunity to view their unborn child prior to making an irreversible life altering decision.”
“Ultimately the ultrasound law is about requiring the abortion doctors to simply turn the screen,” he said.
He went on to persuade the committee to keep the current in law in place because it was in the best interest of women.
“Each woman deserves as much information as possible so she can make her choice with knowledge and live with less regret and second guessing,” he said.
The vote breakdown is below:
Senate: Continued to 2017 in Education and Health (8-Y 7-N)
YEAS–Newman, Black, Carrico, Garrett, Cosgrove, Dunnavant, Chase, Suetterlein–8.
NAYS–Saslaw, Lucas, Howell, Locke, Barker, Petersen, Lewis–7.
