By Ann Warner, Special to Statehouse Report | By now you’ve read the news: an extreme and dangerous abortion ban passed through the House Judiciary Committee by a vote of 15-7 after six hours of discussion about how outrageously harmful this bill would be for women, their families, doctors, tax payers, and the rule of law.
And to add insult to injury, it all happened on Equal Pay Day – a day that shines a light on the persistent gender wage gap in our state.
Every day the women of South Carolina must deal with the fact that we are among the worst states in the nation when it comes to violence against women, economic equality, maternal and infant mortality, and women’s leadership.
It is a slap in the face when our elected officials choose to spend our state’s resources undermining our healthcare access and undercutting our ability to make decisions that will affect us more than anyone: decisions about pregnancy and parenting.
With moves like this, we can anticipate South Carolina’s ranking as the 45th most inequitable state for women to plummet even further.
To recap, H.3020 would prevent most women from getting abortions as early as six weeks into a pregnancy, before most people even know that they are pregnant. This is an egregious invasion of privacy. Women are fully capable of making decisions about pregnancy and parenting. Their rights to do so have been upheld by decades of legal precedent. What makes South Carolina legislators think they know better than women?
The impact of passing H.3020 cannot be overstated. If this bill passes, we know what will happen:
- Doctors have testified that the provision of health care during pregnancy would be severely compromised by this bill, and in fact, many OB/GYNs would stop practicing altogether in South Carolina. In a state where 17 counties do not have a single OB/GYN, we cannot afford to put up any more barriers to quality care.
- Extensive research has shown that women denied abortions are more likely to experience serious complications from the end of pregnancy, including eclampsia and death. They are more likely to remain with abusive partners. They are more likely to suffer anxiety and loss of self-esteem in the short term after being denied abortion.
- Women denied abortions suffer economic consequences: According to peer-reviewed studies, women refused an abortion have four times greater odds of living below the Federal Poverty Level.
- Any woman of reproductive age would be affected by this law, but the worst effects would be on people who have less access to health care, including young women, women of color, women with disabilities, women with low incomes, and women living in rural areas.
While some lawmakers see women’s health as a political game to be strategically leveraged to test the courts systems, we all need to remember that real women’s health, dignity, and freedom hang in the balance.
South Carolinians do NOT want such an extreme bill. According to a recent Winthrop poll, a significant majority of South Carolinians recognize certain circumstances when legal abortion may be appropriate.
We can stop this bill if we speak up. Call your representative today: ask for their leadership and tell them “NO” on H.3020.
Ann Warner is CEO of WREN, the South Carolina Women Rights and Empowerment Network.
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We Can Do Better, South Carolina!