Washington, D.C. – The “War on Women” is escalating in Congress, and we need every elected official who says they champion women’s basic rights to be our champions right now.
The latest reported attack on women’s access to abortion care is coming in the form of an ugly rider attached to the so-called “doc fix.” The doc fix is a pretty simple concept: allow Medicare to pay higher fees to physicians. This bill would also provide funding to community health centers, but only those that withhold abortion care.
Abortion is a common and necessary aspect of women’s reproductive health needs, with one in three women having an abortion by the age of 45. Withholding this basic health service is not just discriminatory, but cruelly harmful.
NOW calls on every member of Congress to end the “War on Women” and support policies to ensure that every woman’s health insurance policy — whether she is insured through Medicaid, an employer-based plan or a state exchange — fully covers the entire range of reproductive health care services, including abortion and birth control.