Virginia NOW (the Virginia Chapter of the National Organization for Women) is a statewide membership organization of  men and women throughout the Commonwealth, with chapters in Alexandria, Arlington, Charlottesville, the Fredericksburg area, Montgomery County, Fairfax County, Prince William County, Richmond, Rockbridge Valley, and the Vienna-McLean Area. We support the Board of Health’s decision to amend the medically-unnecessary restrictions on women’s health centers.

As an organization whose purpose is to bring women into full participation in society, it is our position that, in order for women to participate fully in our democracy, they must have access to services that enable them to plan their families, safeguard their health, and pursue educational and employment opportunities. Access to all forms of reproductive health care, including birth control and safe, legal and accessible abortion, is an economic and family issue as well as a health issue.

Women’s health clinics provide essential services throughout a woman’s life, including screening for cancer and sexually transmitted diseases and contraception. For some women, especially those in lower-income areas, young women, and women of color, a women’s health clinic is the point of entry into the health care system and may be their only health care provider.

While all health professions should be regulated, the current restrictions are not necessary for patients’ safety. Numerous doctors and medical groups oppose these regulations because they aren’t necessary for patients’ safety.  Rather, medically unnecessary mandates such as these jeopardize women’s health by making it more difficult for women to access safe and legal first-trimester abortion, along with the other health care services these centers provide.   

The Board of Health’s decision to amend these restrictions is in the best interest of women’s health and safety and we support it.