Stay engaged, involved, and up-to-date: 01/01/2018 Weekly Review
Monday, January 8th, 2018
Stay engaged, involved, and up-to-date: In the weekly reviews from the Women’s Public Policy Network, we look back on last week’s highlights from the WPPN, share updates on bills affecting women that are moving at the Statehouse, showcase weekly news clips, and provide calls to action on bills pending in the Legislature. Sign up for our emails to receive these updates in your inbox every week!
Public health policy expert and outspoken healthcare advocate, Allison Russo, shares her own powerful story to express the real-life impacts that legislation can have on women. Her guest blog post discusses why Ohio lawmakers should stop the bans and, instead, prioritize issues that help women and families.
“After consulting with my OB/GYN, who sweetly shed a tear with me during that initial visit, I was immediately referred to a perinatal genetics clinic to better understand my prenatal screening options. In the six years since my prior pregnancy, those tests were now vast and advanced, and I wanted to take full advantage of the information they provided. The two weeks between that initial screening blood draw and our meeting with the genetics counselor to discuss the results were not pleasant ones for my husband and me. The “what-ifs” were overwhelming.” Read the full blog post here.
The Real Future of Work
Politico Magazine, January/February 2018
Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 2, 2018
Rewire, January 3, 2018
A record-breaking 22 women are now serving in the US Senate
CNN, January 3, 2018
Proposed law would ban forcing Ohio nurses to work overtime
Dayton Daily News, January 4, 2018
Restore long-term funding for children’s health programs: editorial
Cleveland Plain Dealer, January 5, 2018
Oprah Is the First Black Woman To Receive Cecil B. DeMille Award & It’s A Big Step Forward For Women Of Color
Bustle, January 6, 2018
Join panelists Bob Ghiloni, Head Men’s Basketball Coach at Denison University, Karen Dennis, Director of Track and Field and Cross Country at The Ohio State University, Jaden Lunger, men’s soccer student-athlete at Otterbein University, and Cayla McNeil, former women’s lacrosse student-athlete at Otterbein University. The panel will be moderated by Sarah Pariser, Director of Grants and Programs at The Women’s Fund of Central Ohio. Find out more and register online here.
NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio and Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio: Columbus Organizing Meeting
- HB 435 (Antani, Craig) – Body Cameras: The bill would establish that policy body camera footage be made public record with certain exceptions to protect privacy, including the following: a confidential investigatory record, a video within a private home, a video within a private business, or a video of a sex crime victim. The House Government Oversight & Accountability Committee will hold a first hearing on the bill for sponsor testimony on Wednesday, January 10. The Committee will meet at 9:30 AM in Statehouse Room 114.
- SB 28 (Uecker) – Abortion: Would require fetal remains from a surgical abortion at an abortion facility to be disposed of by cremation or burial. The Senate Government Oversight & Reform Committee will hold a third hearing with all testimony and possible amendments and vote this upcoming Wednesday, January 10. The Committee will meet at 9:45 AM in the Senate Finance Hearing Room.
- SB 201 (Bacon, O’Brien) – Reagan Tokes Act: Would require released violent offenders wearing GPS monitors to have set geographic boundaries and would give law enforcement the ability to access the GPS data without a subpoena. A companion bill is moving in the House, as well. The Senate Government & Oversight Committee will hold a third hearing for opponent testimony on the bill this upcoming Wednesday, January 10. The Committee will meet at 9:45 AM in the Senate Finance Room.
At the conclusion of the 2017 legislative session, the Ohio legislature passed the Down syndrome abortion ban (HB214) out of the House and Senate. The bill was then signed into law by Governor Kasich before the end of the year, making it the 20th restriction to abortion and reproductive health care that he has signed since taking office in 2011. Ohio is now the fourth state to pass such a law, despite similar legislation in Indiana being blocked by the a federal judge for being unconstitutional.
The legislation will charge a doctor with a fourth degree felony if they performed an abortion procedure for a woman if the reason for seeking to terminate the pregnancy is in part due to a Down syndrome diagnosis. During a time when Ohio women and families are facing a complex prenatal diagnosis, lawmakers should not stand in the way of a health care decision that should, instead, be a decision informed by comprehensive medical information and made in consultation with a woman’s family and doctor.
