“I’m absolutely thrilled women are taking a much larger role,” said Kasich. “You offer something so different than what men offer. My legislators who understand issues like autism and Medicaid expansion, I go to women with a different point of view and a different understanding.”While many women are rightfully concerned with Medicaid and autism, certainly this group of women might have something further to offer? Perhaps some advice on creating jobs?
Report: States enact 106 new reproductive health laws in 2013
Kasich Signs Budget into Law, Does Not Veto Abortion Provisions
Republican Budget Rhetoric vs Reality
- 1 in 4 school districts get less funding than in FY12-13
- 3 in 4 school districts get less funding than in FY10-11 [source: Innovation Ohio]
Local Communities
Rhetoric: There is “a lot of continued support to local governments” in this budget.
Reality: Local communities will get $1.4 billion less from this budget than they did in FY10-11, causing increased local taxes and cuts in services [source: Policy Matters Ohio].
Taxes
Rhetoric: The “across the board” tax cut benefits all Ohioans.
Reality: The tax provisions in the budget reward Ohio’s most affluent with average annual tax cuts of more than $6,000 a year, while low-income Ohioans will pay slightly more. [source: Policy Matters Ohio]
- Top 1% (earning $335,000 and up) get $6,083
- Middle (earning $33,000-$51,000) get $9
- Lowest 20% (earning under $18,000) will pay $12 more
Stand with Women in Ohio
- Defunding Planned Parenthood.
- Preventing funds from going to rape crisis centers that refer women to facilities or medical care providers who also provide abortions.
- Prevent genetic counseling services funded by the Ohio Department of Health from referring to entities that provide abortions except for cases of medical emergency.
- Prohibit abortion clinics from having transfer agreements with public hospitals or with doctors affliated with public hospitals.
- Requires a physician to detect a fetal heartbeat via external exams, inform women in writing of the presence of a fetal heartbeat and inform her of the statistical likelihood that her fetus could be carried to term.
Ohio Budget imposes new abortion restrictions, redefines basic biology
Legislative ReCap: Ohio Legislature Works to Limit Abortion Access
There’s a lot going on this week, so we thought a quick recap of the different bills that are impacting women in Ohio might be helpful. The conference committee is preparing to meet today, Tuesday, to begin the process of reconciling the House and Senate versions of the budget. After this process is completed the budget will head to Governor John Kasich’s desk where he will have the opportunity to line item veto any provisions he disagrees with. As we have previously noted the Ohio Budget contains many provisions which negatively impact women. These provisions would:
- Reprioritize family planning funds, essentially blocking funding for Planned Parenthood. Planned Parenthood serves nearly 100,000 women in Ohio, providing cancer screening, birth control, STD treatment and prevention, pap tests and health information.
- Prevent funds from going to rape crisis centers that refer women to facilities or medical care providers who also provide abortions. (HB 108, a separate bill with these provisions ,was also voted on by the House and is receiving hearings in the Senate.)
- Prevent genetic counseling services funded by Ohio Department of Health from referring to entities that provide abortions except for cases of medical emergency.
- Prohibit abortion clinics from entering agreements with public hospitals or with doctors affiliated with public hospitals. These agreements to transfer patients in medical distress are required by State law, so without them many clinics will be forced to close. The closure of an abortion clinic in Toledo that could not obtain a transfer agreement demonstrates how this provision could impact the rest of the state.
- Increase the mandatory waiting period for an abortion from 24hrs to 48 hrs
- Require the woman to undergo an ultrasound that would reveal the entire body of the fetus and pay for this ultrasound out of pocket. In the early stages of pregnancy a transvaginal ultrasound may be the only type of ultrasound that would show the entire fetus.
- Redefine a medical emergency as something that would result in the woman’s death. This means doctors may not be able to intervene even in cases of a miscarriage.
- Eliminate “medical necessity” as a reason to forego the waiting period.
- Require physicians to disclose any earnings that would result from carrying out the abortion.
- Require physicians to give a verbal description of the ultrasound, including the amount of pain a fetus can feel and offer women pictures from the ultrasound.
- Charge doctors who do not follow these rules with a first degree felony and a fine of up to $1 million.
- Require physicians to give women information regarding the risks of abortions, including false information stating that women who have abortions have an increased risk of breast cancer. Studies have shown that there is no link between the two.
Your morning reading
Closing of Abortion Clinic Foreshadowing Budget Impact
“We’ll have to see how this proceeds through the House and the Senate conference committee and have just got to wait and see how it goes, then I’ll make a decision as to whether I think it goes too far or doesn’t, but keep in mind that I’m pro-life.”You can let Governor Kaisch know how you feel about this issue by calling his office at 614-466-3555.
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