Health Care Amendments an Invasion to Women’s Privacy

On 1/30, supporter Jennifer Shaffer’s letter to the editor titled, “Health Care Amendments an Invasion to Women’s Privacy,” was published in the Massillon Independent. It called on Congressman Boccieri to make sure women’s health care is included in the final health care reform package.

Dear Editor,

I would like to address the current health care reform and how it is outrageously discriminatory towards women due to the Stupak and Nelson amendments.

These amendments ultimately take away the privacy rights granted in Roe v Wade (1973) for women and the type of health care Americans can purchase with their own money by attempting to regulate abortion.  The language in these amendments is highly discriminatory, invasive, and stigmatizing.  The issue here is not whether abortion is moral or immoral – that will be a point argued until the end of humanity.  The issue with these amendments is what the government can and cannot regulate and what individual Americans can do with their bodies.  Congressman Boccieri voted for the Stupak amendment in the House version of heath care reform because he believed it upheld Hyde by not allowing public funds to be used for abortions, but he was vastly mistaken.  The Hyde amendment has been the law on this issue of funding since 1976 and those facilities performing the procedure and other reproductive health services for women have never had a problem keeping private and public funds separated.  The Stupak and Nelson amendments go far beyond Hyde, and if passed, will permanently take away coverage and rights from millions of women.

Health care reform is about providing affordable health care to millions of Americans – not about regulating abortion.  Boccieri needs to push for the final health care bill to remove the discriminatory language of Stupak and Nelson and to provide equal coverage to all Americans.

Jennifer Shaffer