President Barack Obama’s address to Congress and the people of the United States resonates at a time when people are fed up with the health care status quo because it is not working. The National Organization for Women is pleased President Obama mentioned the need for a public option to provide health care to those not currently served by the profit-driven private insurance industry.
NOW President Terry O’Neill said, “I am proud to stand here today with the heroic Dr. LeRoy Carhart and his brave staff at the Abortion & Contraception Clinic of Nebraska, as well as the other fine feminist leaders who join me in saying: This clinic will stay open!”
“Since the assassination of Dr. George Tiller in May, anti-abortion forces have set their sights on Dr. LeRoy Carhart. Operation Rescue plans to besiege Dr. Carhart’s Nebraska clinic this weekend in an attempt to terrorize the clinic workers and their patients, with the ultimate goal of closing down the facility,” said NOW President Terry O’Neill. “Because NOW believes that it is every woman’s right to have access to the full range of reproductive health care, I will be there to stand with leaders and activists from NOW and other organizations to help defend these brave providers.”
NOW is outraged to learn that the House Energy and Commerce Committee passed an amendment excluding abortion services from the ‘essential’ health benefits package as defined by the government. Under this amendment, subsidies used to help pay insurance premiums for low-income people could not be used for abortion services. The New York Times reports that “insurers must use money from private sources to pay for any abortions.
Health care is a fundamental human right, and ensuring access to quality, affordable and comprehensive health care within the United States is a moral imperative confronting our legislators today. Since 1993, the National Organization for Women has been a leader in the campaign for single-payer health care in the U.S. It is, as President Obama noted last week, the only way to ensure coverage for everyone.