Republicans do not want women having control over their own bodies and their reproductive choices. This is clear, not only from their views on abortion in general, but also from the sheer number of laws they have attempted to pass in order to defund women’s health programs—not just domestically but globally. They make no secret of the fact that their views on women and sex are nothing short of puritanical and their obsession with our uteri is not only disturbing, it’s also dangerous and life-threatening. And with Republicans now in control of the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives, reproductive justice for women seems very unlikely at the federal level.
Luckily, Democrats are taking up this fight in their respective states. Leading the way is Oregon, which just passed the Reproductive Health Equity Act, requiring health insurance companies to cover a wide range of reproductive services. The bill is currently up for signing by the state’s governor and has a real shot at becoming law.
Democrats in the Oregon Senate passed the Reproductive Health Equity Act, a multifaceted measure that requires health insurers to cover a range of reproductive health services—including abortions and contraception, prenatal and postnatal care, and screenings for cancer, sexually transmitting infections, and gestational diabetes—at no cost to patients, no matter their income, citizenship status, or gender identity. (The legislation does include an exemption for religious employers that object to providing abortion and contraception coverage.) Should Roe v. Wade be overturned, the measure also prepares to insulate the state from repercussions by codifying a woman’s legal right to an abortion in the state.
Wow. Not only does this bill include comprehensive coverage, but its authors also thought about making sure that those who are poor, undocumented, or have non-permanent immigration status, and transgender and gender non-confirming people were not excluded. This is not only huge—its a sign of what progressives can do when we are intentional about designing laws that match our talk. Access to this kind of care will save many lives and will keep people from going deeply in debt if they can’t afford these services.
The legislation was the result of a collaboration between state lawmakers and the Pro-Choice Coalition of Oregon, a collective of local reproductive rights advocates, community organizations, and racial and gender justice groups. Those involved say that while the move to provide reproductive health care—particularly abortion—at no cost is a significant step on its own, the Reproductive Health Equity Act is important not only because of the services it provides, but for who is eligible to receive them.
In 2017 alone, more than 400 measures trying to preserve reproductive rights have been introduced in state houses across the country. And we need all of them, now more than ever. This is because Republicans continue to pose a grave threat to reproductive health.
In Texas, where they have successfully cut more than $74 million in family planning programs, the maternal mortality rate is the worst in the developed world. Democratic lawmakers and advocates in Texas have pushed Republicans to do something about women’s lack of access to health care and formed a maternal mortality task force but nothing got done. Why? Because their Republican colleagues preferred to spend their time on ridiculous bathroom bills instead. Make no mistake—their religious and cultural war over abortion and family planning will end up with many more casualties if Democrats don’t take up the fight and are unrelenting about it. Access to safe, affordable reproductive health care should be non-negotiable for our party.