The Family Foundation supports regulations that protect the health and safety of women of Virginia. Research shows many cases in which un-regulated abortion centers in the state have compromised women’s safety and this must stop. From cases of malpractice, to almost 300 deficiencies found during inspections by the Department of Health, it is obvious that Virginia’s abortion industry is in need of these safety regulations.

Whenever anyone goes to a doctor's office, walk-in clinic, or outpatient surgery facility, they expect the facility to be an environment that meets basic standards of health and safety, that the staff is well-trained, the examining room is clean, and that the equipment is sterilized - that is what we want to provide for the women of Virginia who make the unfortunate decision to have an abortion. 

The Family Foundation stands for women and their safety. We speak for ourselves, our families, and thousands of Virginians that see the necessity of these regulations. It is not political agendas that make these regulations important, but the women that step through the doors of centers across the state that expect quality health care. We care too much about women’s safety to let the violations found in unregulated centers continue.

Violations include blood stained and unsterilized equipment, untrained staff and a host of other health and safety failures. These disturbing instances are realities in abortion centers that provide care to the women of Virginia. Unfortunately, these issues have been continually overlooked because of the disproportionate attention given to the construction standards that opponents of the regulations call “unnecessary.”

While it is unfortunate that people only pay attention to some of the facts and do not see the glaring truths about the need for these regulations, the construction standards themselves are also critical to protecting women’s safety. As just one example, an abortion center in Virginia Beach (Virginia Women’s Wellness) is currently located on the second floor of a building that does not have elevator access.  If a life-threatening emergency were to occur at this facility, a gurney would not be able to access the procedure room.  Instead, picture EMS personnel carrying the critical patient down the flight of stairs either by hand, in a stretcher chair, or something similar.  Women choosing to have procedures in abortion facilities should at least have the assurance that if an emergency occurs, EMS will be able to readily access them where they are located.

The abortion industry continues to claim that it is safe, but inspection reports are indisputable evidence that their idea of safe is far different than any reasonable person could claim.  Perhaps the most frightening aspect of the inspection reports isn’t the blatant disregard for basic health standards, but the fact that even with notice of inspection and the discovery of violations in other centers the operators of the rest of the facilities thought they were safe for women.  If it wasn’t for the abortion center health and safety standards adopted by the Board of Health, these abortion centers would be continuing to operate with blood splattered equipment and unsterilized facilities. 

Major violations of what are considered the most basic health concerns are proof that the abortion industry should not be self-regulated. For years, industry representatives opposed legislation in the General Assembly that only required licensing, inspections, and emergency equipment. The discovered violations show us why the abortion industry was always opposed to even basic regulations. They knew that they would have to change their ways if basic health, safety, and sanitary regulation were put into place. These regulations are obviously necessary to make the centers in the state of Virginia safer for the women who choose to seek services there.

These centers that are violating safety standards are not just abstract; they are in Richmond, in Fairfax, here in Virginia, putting the safety and lives of Virginia residents at risk. The abortion industry has proven itself untrustworthy and these regulations are necessary to hold these facilities accountable and to keep women of the Commonwealth safe.