To whom it may concern:

The high standard of care provided by women's health centers is proven by their impressive safety record. Abortion is one of the safest medical procedures, and is also legal, and these centers should not be penalized for offering it as one of their services. The overregulation written into these new rules will limit access to a wide range of preventive reproductive health care services provided by women's health clinics, including life-saving cancer screenings, family planning, and sexually transmitted infection testing and treatment. The medically inappropriate and unnecessarily burdensome regulations would restrict access to essential health care services for the women of Virginia and further marginalize young, low-income, uninsured and minority women by decreasing their health care options. It is my hope that the regulations will be amended to be based purely on medicine and science and should not impede women's access to essential health care.

Thank you.