Since 2011, the Ohio Legislature has passed more than 20 restrictions to reproductive healthcare and abortion, and anti-choice lawmakers are at it again. This week, the Ohio Senate Health, Human Services, and Medicaid Committee convened for a hearing on Senate Bill 155, the Medical Misinformation Act. The bill would force doctors to provide patients seeking a medication abortion about information about a so-called “abortion reversal” procedure, an unproven treatment that has no basis in medical or scientific accuracy.
In fact, the medical community and experts agree that this procedure is untested, unsupported, and unethical medical treatment. The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) have denounced the so-called “reversal” treatment, and they do not recommend its usage. And while the protocol for medication abortion is regulated by The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), this so-called “abortion reversal” treatment has not been evaluated by the FDA. This alone should discredit this procedure as unproven science and dangerous medical practice that our state legislature has no place mandating into doctors’ offices.
Meanwhile, supporters of Senate Bill 155 want to:
Healthcare practices should always be rooted in fact, science, and medical accuracy. That is not the case for Senate Bill 155, which takes the interference between women and their doctors to a shocking new level. Such blatant disregard and interference of the patient-doctor relationship is beyond inappropriate – it’s downright unethical. Politicians should play no role in the doctor’s office, and doctors should not have to provide misinformation to their patients based on anti-science and anti-abortion rhetoric.
The bottom line: Senate Bill 155 insults, deceives, and could potentially harm women seeking reproductive health care, and we can’t let bills like this become the norm for healthcare practices in Ohio. That’s exactly why our Executive Director Elizabeth Brown testified on Tuesday in firm opposition to the bill. Watch the clip of Liz’s testimony below:
[Source: The Ohio Channel]
Medical misinformation regarding in healthcare is extremely dangerous, and it should never be mandated in healthcare practice. Women should always be able to make clear and informed choices about their reproductive health options, with the guidance of medical professionals, not lawmakers. We joined with incredible partners and advocates like URGE: United for Reproductive and Gender Equity, NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio, and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio to stand against this misguided and potentially dangerous legislation.
When women are making decisions about their health care, they deserve medically accurate and unbiased information. It is clear that Senate Bill 155, which is rooted is misinformation and unproven research, fails to meet that standard, and we must stop this dangerous legislation in its tracks. Take action to tell your Ohio Senator to reject the Medical Misinformation Act.
