The dramatic passage of Virginia’s abortion clinic regs bill; will put most out of business?
Guest-posting at LifeSiteNews.com, Americans United for Life’s Dan McConchie wrote of the dramatic passage in the Virginia General Assembly last week of the toughest bill to date in the US regulating clinics that commit first trimester abortions.
Backstory: For years pro-life legislation had been been killed in the VA legislature….
And then there was this week….
On Monday, a rather routine bill came from the VA Senate over to the House with a vote of 40-0. Senate Bill 924 would require the Board of Health to promulgate regulations containing minimum standards for policies related to infection prevention, disaster preparedness, and facility security of hospitals, nursing homes, and certified nursing facilities. Delegate Kathy Byron had an idea. She offered an amendment in the House that added abortion clinics to the list of facilities to be considered as “hospitals” for the setting up of these standards. The amendment passed 63-34.
The bill was then sent back over to the Senate where its future was in doubt…. When it came time to vote, the VA Senate this time voted 20-20 on the bill. Twenty senators changed their vote because they did NOT want to require abortion clinics to meet the same standards as other medical facilities. That is amazing. Pro-abortion legislators continue to vote against basic health and safety rules of abortion clinics, even as abuses such as Kermit Gosnell’s ‘house of horrors’ come to light.
Thankfully, VA’s Lt. Gov., Bill Bolling is pro-life. As the head of the senate, he casts a vote when there is a tie. He voted to pass the bill.
Immediately, Gov. Bob McDonnell enthusiastically indicated his willingness to sign the new bill into law. Even Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli sent out an email to constituents praising the bill’s passage.
Now pro-aborts are claiming…
I’m not sure this is a good selling point to rederegulate VA abortion mills, but this is their angle. IMO, claiming regulations will shut down most of their chop shops just adds to the growing national thought that abortion mills are deficient. At any rate, despite their fear-mongering, abortion clinics appear more prepared than they’re letting on. According to the Washington Post:
Virginia abortion clinics believe a new state law requiring them to meet hospital standards could force some to close, even though several newly-built clinics are designed to meet structural and architectural standards hospitals.
The General Assembly last week approved legislation requiring all offices, clinics and centers that perform first-trimester abortions to be regulated as hospitals, which advocates on either side of the issue think may be the strictest requirement in the country.
Several states already require abortion clinics that do second-trimester abortions be regulated as hospitals, while VA’s law would apply to clinics that do first trimester procedures. Unlike many other states, VA law already requires second-trimester abortions be performed in hospitals….
A review of these hospital-type regulations by the American Journal of Public Health found that in Texas the number of abortion providers fell from 20 in 2003 before the regulations to four in 2007.
[Rosemary] Codding [founder of Falls Church Healthcare Center] said when watched as clinics across the country closed because they could not meet the hospital standards, she razed her clinic’s third floor office space and rebuilt it to meet then-state standards for a Class II hospital, or surgical center.
David Nova, who supervised building the new Planned Parenthood clinics in Roanoke and Charlottesville, said the hallways there and at 2 other Planned Parenthood clinics in Virginia Beach and Richmond are wide enough for 2 gurneys to pass, like in all hospitals. And the exam room is now a “cavernous” 16 by 18 feet.
The other side is apparently planning to sue, as usual. But this time there are pro-life stalwarts in the governor’s mansion and AG’s office. According to the Associated Press:
Democrats argued it wouldn’t pass constitutional muster because it would put an undue burden on poor women and those in rural areas, where clinics likely would close. They also argued it would violate the equal protection guarantees of the Constitution by treating abortions differently than similar procedures….
Laurence Tribe, professor of constitutional law at Harvard Law School, said the bill would likely be deemed unconstitutional “because its transparent purpose and effect would be to make such early abortions far more difficult if not impossible for many women to obtain.”
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who supported similar legislation as a state senator, said he believes the law would be constitutional.
“For over 25 years, VA abortion clinics have not been held to minimal health and safety standards,” he said. “As a result, women who walk into these clinics are often not treated with the care and respect that any human being deserves.”
[Top graphic via Ms.]
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
I thought they wanted abortion to be SAFE, legal, and rare? What happened to that mantra?
Kathy Byron is an American hero!
A review of these hospital-type regulations by the American Journal of Public Health found that in Texas the number of abortion providers fell from 20 in 2003 before the regulations to four in 2007.
According to Life Dynamics, there are FORTY-SIX abortion businesses in Texas. I can’t imagine that the state would be so unlucky as to get 42 new mills in just four years… can someone from Texas please clarify?
I don’t know about how many abortion mills there will be, but there will be the populations that margaret sanger wanted eliminated. hispanic people are the largest cohort of the young generation. texas has tons of young people. texas also has jobs and job mobility, so there are careers to be made. people also move in from seattle and california and new york, for tech jobs. they aren’t typically texan. texans are usually very pro-life and deeply religious. the new people get shocked by the churches on nearly every corner. I overheard a co-worker calling her family to tell them about a billboard advertising that God Loves Everyone, as something creepy and unusual.
making sure a clinic passed BASIC standards for healthy and safety would put “undo burden on poor women”? Shows how much they care for poor women. So what if Ms. Sanchez has to have an abortion on a table caked with dried blood with mouse feces and cockroaches on the floor and medical equipment “sterilized” in a dishwasher next to a toilet (this actually occurred in an abortion clinic). She may catch a disease, infection and be rendered sterile or worse, DIE, but at least it wasn’t an “undo burden” to her!
considering that there are ambulance calls to abortion facilities on occasion….I can’t see why they are crying about this….unless they are admitting that the facilities are dirty and unsafe perhaps?
up to 17 would have to close? WOW…..that would be good!
The abortion industry has thrived during the era of government subsidies and laissez-faire regulatory oversight.
It will be good to take the tax-funding away, and require standard medical safety.
My fear is that the abortion industry will quickly reform itself and continue the killing, just less profitably.
We need to continue pushing pro-life efforts, not just anti-abortion legislation. We must have pro-life CPC’s near each abortuary. We need laws like the bill in Dakota, requiring an abortion-minded woman to visit a pro-life center — so we can be sure that she knows all of her options clearly, and what help is available to her.
This is unrelated to the topic at hand, but it’s still important. Pro-abortion Wisconsin Rep. Gordon Hintz has threatened pro-life Wisconsin Rep. Michelle Litjens, yelling “You’re f—ing dead!” at her at the end of a debate in the Assembly:
http://www.postcrescent.com/article/20110301/APC0602/103010341/Editorial-Hintz-crosses-line-post-vote-conduct?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cs
The debate was about unions and collective bargaining, but I think it’s important to note that Rep. Hintz is a radical pro-abort. In 2007 he mocked those who oppose emergency contraception because it can result in the destruction of nascent human life prior to implantation:
“There are a small group of extremists who believe that all forms of birth control are abortion,” Hintz said. “[This is] something that I believe is out of the mainstream line of thinking of the public and out of line with science.”
http://www.prochoicewisconsin.org/news/headlines/200709205.shtml
Rep. Hintz also proved his “pro-choice, pro-woman” bona fides by having a citation issued to him because he got caught during an prostitution investigation at a massage parlor:
http://www.postcrescent.com/article/20110222/APC0101/102220426/Rep-Hintz-s-sexual-misconduct-citation-linked-prostitution-case?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE
Rep. Litjens, however, is strongly pro-life, listing support of the right to life as one of her campaign priorities:
“I believe it’s a baby. It is our moral duty to protect those who cannot protect themselves. I am pro-life.”
http://www.campaignsitebuilder.com/templates/displayfiles/tmpl154.asp?SiteID=3036&PageID=55941&Trial=false
Wow, John, that is so disturbing! Of course you won’t hear this on NBC or CNN.
We need laws like the bill in Dakota, requiring an abortion-minded woman to visit a pro-life center
So the woman can be preached to and told lies in order to dissuade her from having an abortion?
“We need laws like the bill in Dakota, requiring an abortion-minded woman to visit a pro-life center — so we can be sure that she knows all of her options clearly, and what help is available to her.”
That is what Germany has. Women must go to counseling designed to convince her not to abort. They cannot get the abortion without the second independent counseling M.D’s signature that she has been counseled not to abort.
Oh, and the abortion rate is much lower in Germany.
So the woman can be preached to and told lies in order to dissuade her from having an abortion
Lies like these?
Yeah, that 4 number for Texas is WAY off. There are 4 abortionists in Austin alone.
Wow John. Some of these things need to become widespread news in Wisconsin. Threats to kill are often used by abusers to keep battered victims in line. Why are people electing these guys?
Sorry doesn’t cut it.
I sent an email to the author of the Washington Post article to see what’s up. Maybe the study in question only looked at a particular section of Texas… or the safety regulations were reversed and 40 dumps sprouted…?
I’ll let you know if I hear anything.
I just heard back from the author. (That was quick!) The answer to our quandry: the American Journal of Public Health study was limited to facilities doing second-trimester abortions.
I still very much doubt those numbers. All 4 clinics in Austin do second trimester abortions,and I know for a fact several Dallas and Houston clinics do as well.
Something’s fishy here.
Of course, I’d be thrilled if we were able to cut down the clinics in Texas. In fact OR is releasing some very damning information about the state of abortion in Texas tomorrow. I can’t wait!
Im not familiar with the VA regulations on hospitals (maybe I’ll read up on them) but it seems clear that there are (or at least should be) regulations for hospitals that go beyond “basic” safety and such. Hospitals, after all, offer a wide range of services, especially as common emergency response sites, that other health clinics don’t provide. It seems likely that those services would require more stringent building regulations (wider hallways, more equipment, etc) than smaller, procedure-specific clinics would need in order to be safe.
Like I said, I don’t know enough about the specific regulations here to say whether they’re justified. Perhaps someone more familiar with VA law (as previous commenters seem to be?) could confirm that all of the hospital regulations are necessary for clinics?
At the very least, it seems like a clear mistake to try to equate regulations for hospitals with regulations required for basic safety and cleanliness in a health clinic.
Would you have surgery at anything less than an ambulatory surgical center, Andrew?
I wouldn’t.
In a facility that deals with blood and other body fluids, Andrew wants his daughters NOT to have a hospital’s minimal level of sanitation. Niiiice.
Andrew – look at the health regulation violations for Gosnell’s clinic. It was disgusting. Any clinic should be run, overseen and protect the clientele.
We should have any medical clinics, especially ones that deal with surgery of any kind, to meet minimum standards, and possibly meet better than minimum standards. It’s been said that the regulation of veterinary clinics are more stringent than ones for abortion clinics.
Don’t we think that humans deserve at least the same care as animals? I thought abortion was supposed to be safe, legal and rare.
As Abby Johnson says – abortion may be legal, but they are not safe or rare.
Kudos to Byron for calling out the 20(!) votes that changed their standards of heath levels for aborting women. Why should standards be lowered for women? Abortion is a surgical procedure and should have the same standards, right?
Guess this story helps cement two things that we keep seeing these days.
1) Supporting abortion is more important than safety for women.
2) Officials who take $$ from PP, etc., are beholden to ignoring safety for women and common sense regulations.
Ninek, “joyfromillinois”, did you actually read what I wrote? Please do so again. As I clearly said, we should have standards and regulations for health clinics. I was just wondering whether all of the regulations that apply to hospitals need to necessarily apply to clinics. Are you both taking the position that every single hospital regulation in Virginia is appropriate for any facility that performs any medical procedure?
Nope – but if it’s an ambulatory surgery it better be up-to-snuff.
Many of the violations in the abortion world have been: non-qualified personnel performing abortions, no resuscitation equipment in case of a catastrophe, unsanitary conditions, unsafe procedures for handling hazardous materials, improper handling of blood and other hazardous materials, not having a proper anesthesiologist performing anesthesia, etc. Even some buildings can not handle having an emergency gurney to get an unconscious patient out of the facility.
so the violations are numerous. I have not even listed some of the violations that have been documented in the abortion industry….
Should they have hospital regulations? I’m not sure what that means – but should a doctor be performing the surgery? Should proper medical personnel be there doing what they should? Should all safety measures be in place in case of an emergency? Should the place be surgically clean if they do surgery? In short – should all medical practices be as they should?
You bet.
oh – and don’t get me started regarding health risks and artificial hormones found in all hormonal contraception given out like candy by PP and Universities. Class I carcinogen by the World Health Organization. even Mayo Clinic had a big article on it…Boo.
oh – and what about tele-med RU-486 abortions! Yikes – best oversight and medical protection there too (not). Boo again.
got to get some work done… bye!
*Sighs* It’s become all about abortion rights & access rather than safety and they will sacrifice safety measures if it grants easier abortion access.
“At the very least, it seems like a clear mistake to try to equate regulations for hospitals with regulations required for basic safety and cleanliness in a health clinic.”
Niiiice. I surely want my daughter to hop right up onto an exam table where they think sanitation is one of those pesky hospital regulations. I mean, why shouldn’t the next pap smear have some cells from the girl or woman before? Share and share alike, eh, Andy? (Or maybe he’s one of those tinfoil-chapeau-sporting types who thinks germs are just a theory?). And Gosnell was just an isolated incident. Riiiight.
Well, Andy’s in good company: Ms magazine agrees that it’s better to close the building than use a little bleach or antiseptic.
Awww… Tony! Don’t leave me out. I want abortion gone and I’m not Catholic. Can you include born-again Christians too?
Of course people like you don’t want SAFE abortion, you just want abortion at all costs, even as the bodies (both mothers and babies) keep piling up.
Hey Tony, great name! I’ll be praying that St. Anthony, patron of lost things (and people?) intercedes for you to God, and helps you find some class, and your abortion loving soul back. Gotta be some Catholic grandmas of yours, etc. praying for ya, too. There is life beyond your abortion wound.
Ah, if only all Catholics were pathetic POS’s by Tony’s definition. Then abortion would already be a memory.
What Sydney said
Well, I guess I get to add $2 for that truly “pathetic” latest anti-Catholic crack, just to round it out to $35. (Don’t worry, Tony, you are doing good work! It’s all going to a pro-life cause associated with the Archdiocese of New York).
Oh, by the way, I agree with you. Abortions, if there should every have to be any, should always be performed in hospitals by doctors. Other pro-choicers aren’t going to agree with you, I’m afraid.
I’m not Catholic, either. I feel so excluded. :P
Joyfromillinois, I think the only thing we disagree on is that you would seem to blindly support a law requiring “hospital” regulations for clinics, without knowing what “hopspital” regulations are. Other than that, I think we’re in the same place on health and safety. Please let me know if there’s something in what I said that suggests with disagree.
Ninek, I’ll try my “please read what I write before trolling it” mantra again. Please point me to where I questioned the wisdom of sanitation regulations?