Can Enemies Join Forces?
From ADA Intern Kate Mewhiney
Prevention First Act
Earlier this year, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid introduced The Prevention First Act. The bill is designed to expand access to preventative health care services and education programs in order to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and abortions in the U.S. Reid has a record of voting against abortion rights, but has introduced the bill with the ultimate goal of eliminating the need for abortion.
The Prevention First Act will:
* Increase funding to the national family planning program (Title X of the Public Health Service Act) to $648 million a year.
* Require health plans to provide equal insurance coverage for contraceptives as they do for other prescription drugs and services.
* Require that federally-funded hospitals make Emergency Contraception (EC) available to victims of sexual assault upon request, as well as factually accurate and unbiased information about EC.
* Allocate $20 million annually in funding to teen-pregnancy prevention programs.
* Require that information about contraceptives, as a part of any federally-funded programs, be factually accurate and unbiased.
The bill aims to accomplish something both pro-choice and pro-life activists want: fewer abortions. Of the six million pregnancies each year in the U.S., roughly half are accidental. Half of those unintended pregnancies end in abortion. With better education and greater access to contraceptives, these numbers can be significantly reduced. The Prevention First Act seems like common sense, a bill over which even the bitterly divided sides of the abortion debate can reach a compromise.
NARAL Pro-Choice America is reaching out in an attempt to reach that compromise. In an open letter to Right-to-Life organizations, NARAL asks that the two clashing sides work together to pass the bill:
We will never resolve our differences on this basic question. But we should agree on an equally fundamental point: America would be a better country if we helped more women prevent unintended pregnancy.
So far, the Right has rebuffed NARAL's offer. Tony Perkins of The Family Research Council called the proposal "unacceptable," saying on the organization's website that the bill is just an excuse to push condom distribution and increase taxes. Based on reactions like this one, it looks like the Right isn't interested in compromise.
This bill is a big step in the right direction. As one of the richest countries in the world, the U.S. has the resources to prevent unwanted pregnancies. And stopping the problem before abortion is ever necessary is something both sides should be able to agree on.
"We hear a lot of talk these days about reducing the number of abortions," Gloria Feldt, the President of Planned Parenthood, said in a press release. "It's time for anti-choice politicians to put their money where their mouths are."
Links
The Prevention First Act
NARAL Letter
Family Research Council
Planned Parenthood of America Press Release
Prevention First Act
Earlier this year, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid introduced The Prevention First Act. The bill is designed to expand access to preventative health care services and education programs in order to reduce the number of unintended pregnancies and abortions in the U.S. Reid has a record of voting against abortion rights, but has introduced the bill with the ultimate goal of eliminating the need for abortion.
The Prevention First Act will:
* Increase funding to the national family planning program (Title X of the Public Health Service Act) to $648 million a year.
* Require health plans to provide equal insurance coverage for contraceptives as they do for other prescription drugs and services.
* Require that federally-funded hospitals make Emergency Contraception (EC) available to victims of sexual assault upon request, as well as factually accurate and unbiased information about EC.
* Allocate $20 million annually in funding to teen-pregnancy prevention programs.
* Require that information about contraceptives, as a part of any federally-funded programs, be factually accurate and unbiased.
The bill aims to accomplish something both pro-choice and pro-life activists want: fewer abortions. Of the six million pregnancies each year in the U.S., roughly half are accidental. Half of those unintended pregnancies end in abortion. With better education and greater access to contraceptives, these numbers can be significantly reduced. The Prevention First Act seems like common sense, a bill over which even the bitterly divided sides of the abortion debate can reach a compromise.
NARAL Pro-Choice America is reaching out in an attempt to reach that compromise. In an open letter to Right-to-Life organizations, NARAL asks that the two clashing sides work together to pass the bill:
We will never resolve our differences on this basic question. But we should agree on an equally fundamental point: America would be a better country if we helped more women prevent unintended pregnancy.
So far, the Right has rebuffed NARAL's offer. Tony Perkins of The Family Research Council called the proposal "unacceptable," saying on the organization's website that the bill is just an excuse to push condom distribution and increase taxes. Based on reactions like this one, it looks like the Right isn't interested in compromise.
This bill is a big step in the right direction. As one of the richest countries in the world, the U.S. has the resources to prevent unwanted pregnancies. And stopping the problem before abortion is ever necessary is something both sides should be able to agree on.
"We hear a lot of talk these days about reducing the number of abortions," Gloria Feldt, the President of Planned Parenthood, said in a press release. "It's time for anti-choice politicians to put their money where their mouths are."
Links
The Prevention First Act
NARAL Letter
Family Research Council
Planned Parenthood of America Press Release
1 Comments:
This strategy is predicated on the idea that the goal of the Family Research Council and similar groups is to improve family life and prevent abortions, when their true purpose is the election of Republicans.
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