NEWBURGH – Local elected officials and regional advocates for women’s reproductive rights demonstrated outside Planned Parenthood in Newburgh to oppose the proposition of the federal Title X “gag-rule,” Tuesday evening.
Title X is a family planning grant for low-income women that was signed into law in 1970 and mainly focuses on birth control, but also covers a wide variety of reproductive health services for qualifying women.
Under the “gag-rule,” doctors and clinicians receiving Title X funding would no longer be allowed to refer women for abortions, despite their express desire to have one. It would also prevent referrals for abortion in the instance the clinician sees evidence of the pregnancy, or birth, causing serious health consequences for the patient- basically, no referrals of any kind from clinicians receiving this funding said President and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Mid Hudson Valley Ruth Ellen Blodgett.
“Under these new rules, they must give them a long list of prenatal care referrals. Some of those doctors might be abortion providers, but it would be up to the woman to go down through that list herself and try and find out who would be willing to do an abortion,” said Blodgett. “It’s a true interruption in the conversation between a provider and a woman.”
Despite the state passing a number of progressive reproductive health legislations this, including: the Reproductive Health Act, the Comprehensive Contraceptive Act and the Boss Bill, Assemblyman Jonathan Jacobson (D-104) said this would drastically affect federal funding for programs, like Planned Parenthood, that receive Title X funds within the state. Although Planned Parenthood only consists of about 1/3 of Title X funding nationally, it makes up more than 50 percent of it within the state and would suffer a loss in funding of $500,000 in the MidHudson alone.
Beyond that, Jacobson said it is just wrong.
“No politician should be telling a doctor what to say to his, or her, patient or what the patient should say to his, or her, doctor. This is wrong,” he said.
Newburgh Mayor Torrance Harvey said given the large number of single-parent women in the city, continued funding of these programs is of utmost importance.This “gag-rule” is set to go into effect on May 3; however, there will be arguments against this amendment heard within various district courts starting next week.
