{"id":220628,"date":"2020-03-24T08:20:28","date_gmt":"2020-03-24T13:20:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=220628"},"modified":"2020-04-16T14:27:46","modified_gmt":"2020-04-16T19:27:46","slug":"states-demand-surgical-abortions-stopped-covid-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/states-demand-surgical-abortions-stopped-covid-19\/","title":{"rendered":"Protecting the weakest: These states demand an end to surgical abortions during the COVID-19 pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Some states have ordered a halt to abortions in conjunction with their efforts to protect other at-risk populations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals, cities, states, and nations have taken extraordinary measures to protect those who are most at-risk of falling ill with the coronavirus, including the elderly and the immunocompromised. People have sacrificed church services, liberty, finances, and non-essential surgeries, among other things, all in an effort to save every life possible. And yet, the abortion industry largely continues to take human lives, while states have issued orders to halt all non-essential and elective procedures. Abortion is, of course, not a medical procedure<\/em> at all — it is the deliberate taking of innocent human life. It should never happen, let alone during a time when governments are pulling out all the stops to protect human lives.<\/p>\n

Some states have rightly included abortion in their list of procedures that must be halted during this time.<\/p>\n

Alabama<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Alabama is among several states being sued by the ACLU in an effort to prohibit them from enforcing a ban on abortion under an order to halt elective surgery in the state. Alabama\u2019s order<\/a>, issued on March 19, 2020, states, \u201cAll elective dental and medical procedures shall be delayed, effective immediately.\u201d A March 25, 2020 report published<\/a> at AL.com suggested the Alabama Department of Public Health would allow the three clinics in the state to remain open amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but a response<\/a> from the state’s Attorney General indicates they had plans to shut them down.<\/p>\n

Attorney General Steve Marshall’s response<\/a> to the ACLU lawsuit states that Alabama has joined an amicus brief in support of Texas, and another in support of Ohio, both of which face similar lawsuits filed by pro-abortion activists. \u201cToday, the State of Alabama is facing litigation because the State refused to grant abortion clinics a blanket exemption from the restrictions imposed by the State Health Order issued on March 27,\u201d said Attorney General Marshall. \u201cAs I stated last Friday, Section 7 of the Order applies to all healthcare facilities and providers, without exception…”<\/p>\n

\u201cPut simply, no provider or clinic is excused from compliance with this order. \u201c he wrote.<\/p>\n

Attorney General Steve Marshall then pointed out that abortion facilities want special treatment, “Today, I have also joined amicus briefs to support the states of Texas and Ohio as they face legal challenges similar to the one being brought against Alabama. In Texas and Ohio, as in Alabama, abortion providers are demanding special treatment and believe that they are above the law when it comes to the emergency orders. \u201cAt a time when all Americans are making significant sacrifices to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, it is remarkable that one class of providers demands to be treated differently than all others. Abortion clinics want an exemption, yet they are by no means exempt from the known risks of spreading the virus in crowded waiting rooms, depleting scarce personal protective equipment that should be reserved for those treating the virus, and transferring patients with complications to already overburdened hospitals.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Alaska<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

According to<\/a>\u00a0a Live Action News report, “On April 7th, Alaskan Governor Mike Dunleavy released a COVID-19 update<\/a> expanding on the medical procedures to be postponed in the state in an effort to save personal protective equipment (PPE) for health care workers dealing with the virus. Included in this mandate<\/a> is the restriction of surgical abortions, among other nonessential surgeries. The update states, ‘Healthcare providers are to postpone surgical abortion procedures unless the life or physical health of the mother is endangered by continuation of the pregnancy during the period of postponement.'”<\/p>\n

Iowa<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

According to a local media report<\/a>, abortion in the state is banned under orders to halt non essential medical surgery. An aide to\u00a0Gov. Kim Reynolds told KCCI8 that\u00a0the proclamation Reynolds enacted \u201csuspends all nonessential or elective surgeries and procedures until April 16th, that includes surgical abortion procedures.\u201d<\/p>\n

The news came after local radio host Simon Conway tweeted<\/a>, \u201cWith immediate effect, surgical abortions are banned in Iowa following @IAGovernor ‘s proclamation yesterday. From her office: ‘Proclamation suspends all nonessential or elective surgeries and procedures until April 16th, that includes surgical abortion procedures.’ #coronavirus\u201d<\/p>\n

Kentucky<\/u><\/b><\/p>\n

Live Action News is currently monitoring the status of Kentucky.<\/em> According to the Louisville Courier-Journal<\/a>, “Gov. Andy Beshear’s\u00a0executive order appears to permit abortion, an outpatient procedure, by giving providers discretion on what services to cancel, though it halts most ‘non-urgent, in-person’ services. … [T]he order said the state will rely on the judgment of ‘licensed healthcare professionals’ in deciding whether a procedure is appropriate under the new restrictions. Beshear’s order designates the Cabinet for Health and Family Services as the agency in charge of overseeing the order.”<\/p>\n

Beshear’s\u00a0order<\/a>\u00a0does not specify whether it allows abortion but Owensboro Health Chief Medical Officer Francis DuFrayne told the Owensboro Times<\/a>, \u201cElective surgery is a broad term that covers almost anything you can do, except emergency trauma…\u00a0 We\u2019re looking at each case carefully.\u201d<\/p>\n

In response, the Kentucky Family Foundation\u00a0tweeted<\/a>, “There\u2019s a shortage of medical masks and equipment in Ky. hospitals due to COVID-19. Some good news for\u00a0@GovAndyBeshear: There are some extra masks at EMW Surgical Center in Louisville, which is, for some reason, still performing elective abortions.”<\/p>\n

On March 27, 2020, Kentucky\u00a0Attorney General Daniel Cameron tweeted<\/a>, “I\u2019m calling on Kentucky abortion providers to follow the same laws as other medical professionals and stop performing elective procedures during #COVID19.” The statement<\/a> posted online reads in part, \u201cToday, I\u2019m calling on CHFS Acting Secretary Eric Friedlander to certify, pursuant to KRS 15.241, that Kentucky\u2019s abortion providers are violating his ban on elective medical procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic by continuing to perform abortions. Kentucky\u2019s current ban on elective medical procedures exists to further the mandated policy of social distancing and to help conserve medical resources for use in fighting COVID-19…. Abortion providers should join the thousands of other medical professionals across the state in ceasing elective procedures, unless the life of the mother is at risk, to protect the health of their patients and slow the spread of the coronavirus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Louisiana<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Governor John Bel Edwards (D) and the Department of Health issued an order<\/a> on March 21, 2020, requiring all non-essential and elective surgeries be postponed until further notice. Any surgery that can be safely postponed for 30 days shall be, and there appears to be no exception for abortions. All three Louisiana abortion facilities have been closed<\/a>, according to Louisiana Right to Life. There is an exception for emergency medical surgeries for pregnant women when the health of the woman or the preborn child is in serious jeopardy.<\/p>\n

“Gov. Edwards and the Department of Health have put measures in place to aggressively stem the spread of COVID-19 and slow the unnecessary use of personal protection equipment that should be donated to hospitals. This new rule that applies across the board to all medical and surgical procedures is consistent with that life-saving goal,” Benjamin Clapper, Executive Director of Louisiana Right to Life told LifeNews<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The organization told LifeNews that as of Monday, the abortion facilities appeared to be closed. A Shreveport-area woman contacted the facilities and was told by an official at Hope Medical Group for Women abortion clinic that they were closed, but that they also intended to “fight the law.”<\/p>\n

Maryland<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Previously, Maryland’s executive order was unclear.\u00a0A reporter had asked the governor of Maryland for clarification, tweeting<\/a>, “I’ve asked for clarification on whether abortions are considered elective. The initial answer seemed to be that the governor’s office doesn’t make that call.” The initial consensus was that it did.<\/p>\n

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MD abortion remains open amidst COVID19 (Image: Twitter)<\/p><\/div>\n

The reporter later\u00a0tweeted<\/a> a request from legislative director Danna L Cox<\/a> for the governor to include abortion facilities in the order. <\/span>POLITICO\u00a0reported<\/a>, “On Monday, Maryland Republican Gov. Larry Hogan appeared to suggest that he was labeling abortion clinics nonessential when he issued a statewide ‘stay-at-home’ order, responding to a reporter\u2019s question about abortions by saying: ‘We included in our directive an order to limit all elective surgeries … because we need to free up beds for the things that are going to save people\u2019s lives.'”<\/p>\n

A report published<\/a> by Life News indicates Maryland health authorities are not viewing abortion as “essential care” and applies to “all elective and non-urgent medical procedures,” writing,\u00a0“Delegate Cox received a response back indicating that, yes, the order for stoppage applied to all licensed medical clinics \u2014 which would include businesses that kill babies in abortions.”<\/p>\n

Cox stated on\u00a0Twitter<\/a>: “For immediate release: Governor Hogan has closed all elective abortion clinics under his Executive Order. We will be monitoring this with our constituents statewide to ensure the law is followed.”<\/p>\n

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For immediate release: Governor Hogan has closed all elective abortion clinics under his Executive Order. We will be monitoring this with our constituents statewide to ensure the law is followed. pic.twitter.com\/LFr2Mi1HON<\/a><\/p>\n

— Dan Cox ?? – Maryland House of Delegates (@DelegateCox) March 24, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n