At
least 200 supporters of women’s health turned out yesterday at the state
Capitol for a Rally to Protect Women’s Health. Lawmakers, physicians and families described the attacks on women’s access to health care in Colorado.
Specifically, speakers addressed the looming threat of HB 1130, which
would create fetal “personhood” by creating a new class of victim for a
fetus. Speakers, representing diverse backgrounds and organizations,
also addressed a third personhood ballot initiative (currently
known as proposed initiative 46), expected on the 2012 ballot. Colorado
voters overwhelming defeated two similar fetal “personhood” ballot
initiatives in the 2008 and 2010 elections, yet it continues to return.
Dr. Andrew Ross, a general OB-GYN in Denver, described how these measures harm the physician-patient relationships.
“As a health care provider, I see these and other attacks on women’s
health as extreme government interference in a woman’s private decision
that needs to be in consultation with her family and her physician…And
as a husband and father, I see them as outrageous attempts to single out
the women in our lives and limit their access to basic health care.”
Jeremy Shaver, executive director of the Interfaith Alliance, offered
the crowd a religious viewpoint on issues surrounding women’s health.
“Religious freedom is our first freedom and it shouldn’t be cheapened,”
he said. “Religious freedom must include the right of women to make
their own individual decisions about birth control and their health
care. Many faith leaders respect women’s moral agency to make decisions
about their reproductive health, without governmental interference or
legal restrictions. Woman of all faiths use birth control while
remaining faithful to their moral compass.”
Meagan Como, a student at Colorado State University in Fort Collins,
talked about her experience being born with hemophilia. She described
why her doctors put her on birth control in an effort to increase her
blood’s ability to clot as a teenager. Meagan’s story highlighted the
need for women to be able to access basic health care, no matter who
they work for.
“Like 99 percent of American women, I also take birth control. While
Sen. Brophy would have you believe taking birth control is something I
do ‘recreationally,’ I’d like to point out that 58 percent of women take
birth control for something other than pregnancy prevention.”
Reps. Crisanta Duran (HD5) and Andy Kerr (HD26) strongly urged their colleagues to defeat HB 1130.
Overall, speakers rallied the energetic crowd which included women,
men, children, and families. Protect Families, Protect Choice and
Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains is grateful to all those who
attended today’s rally and showed their support for women’s health. Our
voices were heard. Together, we reminded our state’s lawmakers to keep
politics out of women’s health.
