Hello,

From my experience, abortion providers have proven that they are not able to self-regulate. All of the below seem reasonable standard of care for an abortion facility. As a woman and a feminist, I ask you, please keep Virginia safe for women.

1. Annual inspections of abortion facilities should be required.
2. Require all Office of Licensure and Certification (OLC) inspections to verify that ultrasounds have been performed at least 24 hours prior to every abortion performed. 
3. Remove the ability of the Commissioner to grant permanent variances.
4. Reinstate all of the health and safety measures the Board watered down during its last amendment process. 
5. Reinstate the definition of "first trimester" as being the first twelve weeks from conception, not "13 weeks and 6 days after last menstrual period." 
6. Reinstate the ability of the department to deny, suspend, or revoke the license to operate an abortion facility for violating "any provision of Article 1 (§ 32.1-123 et seq.) of Chapter 5 of Title 32.1."
7. Reinstate the requirement that the abortion facility ensures that it has removed all of the fetal body parts from inside of the female patient upon the performance of an abortion. 
8. Reinstate the requirement that abortion facilities report to OLC any incidents reported to the malpractice insurance carrier.
9. Reinstate the reasonable design and construction standards that provided for things such as hallways wide enough to carry patients out on stretchers in cases of emergency.

With a grateful heart, thank you for your attention to this. I trust that the Board of Health will keep in mind, the importance of providing women with safe environments that provide them with all the information they need to make an informed decision. This isn't about the patriarchy or fighting against it, this is about a prevention-oriented approach to healthcare.

Sincerely,

Anne Yehl

10th Congressional District