Thank you for the opportunity to give comment about the regulations being proposed for women's healthcare facilities in Virginia.  Several years ago, my daughter, now the mother of three healthy children, lost a baby in the 5th month of pregnancy. The staff at a women's health facility were amazingly helpful to her during the emotional and physical trauma of this miscarriage and helped get her on the road to recovery.  Our famly will be forever grateful for the clinics that offer such supportive services to women in need.

I am concerned that the medically inappropriate and burdensome regulations now being proposed have the potential to restrict access to essential health care services for Virginia's women and further marginalize young, low-income , uninsured and minority women by decreasing their healthcare options.Furthermore, the regulations will increase the financial hurdles to health care for potential patients, with no proven medical benefits. Women need more access to affordable, high quality health care, not less.

The high standards of care provided by women's health centers in Virginia  is proven by their impressive safety record.   Extensive, burdensome requirements for clinic buildings that are unrelated to the services health centers provide and have not proven medical benefit will reduce or eliminate patient access to health care.

It is my hope that the regulations being proposed for women's healthcare facilities will be amended to be based purely on medicine and science and should not impede women's access to essential health care. If regulations placed on women's health centers are based upon evidence-based medical practices that advance the public health, then women in the Commonwealth will be able to maintain access to vital health care from trusted medical providers.