Action | Amend the Regulation after Assessment and Receipt of Public Comment |
Stage | NOIRA |
Comment Period | Ended on 10/31/2018 |
As the Virginia Board of Health should be concerned solely with health of the citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the only consideration here should be whether continued unnecessary prohibitions of a legal medical procedures is more or less safe than the alternative. Given the only alternative here would be forced pregnancy and childbirth, I'm certain you've already seen and read peer reviewed articles proving maternal deaths associated with pregnancy, childbirth, and post-partum causes have risen significantly, especially when concerning women of color. Not only is the health risk to a woman of pregnancy and childbirth MUCH higher than the health risks associated with abortion, but there is a disperate impact on minority women in our Commonwealth.
For the reasons above, it is quite clear the Virginia Board of Health should not only refrain from placing more interference in front of women attempting to ensure their constitutional right to avoid risks to their health, but the Virginia Board of Health should roll back current restrictions that have been improperly created that heighten the risks to women's health as the vast majority of current restrictions were prommulgated solely for religious reasons rather than for medical ones.