I am a retired Physician Assistant.  I worked at the University of Virginia Medical Center for over 20 years, so I understand the importance of evidence based health care.  The current restrictions compromise patient and provider safety and confidentiality, are inconsistent with the regulation of every other type of outpatient health care facility, and impose medically unnecessary building standards that harm the health and safety of women by potentially forcing the closure of many of the women’s healthcare centers that provide abortion services.  I support the Board’s action to amend the regulations for the licensure of abortion facilities, and I strongly support the governor’s recommendations concerning those amendments.  

The restrictions imposed by TRAP were not originally based in science, medicine, or the actual promotion of women’s health and safety.  With the assistance of a physician advisory panel and a design and construction advisory panel, the Board, by voting to amend the regulations, has taken an important step toward implementing evidence-based remedies for these restrictions. Combined with the governor’s recommendations, these changes in the regulations prioritize the lives of thousands of women and families who rely on women’s health centers for comprehensive reproductive health care, including crucial preventative care, STI and cancer screenings, and birth control.  I am thankful that the Board and the administration have taken steps to ensure that the regulation of abortion facilities is medically appropriate and preserves the high standards of patient safety and access to care that abortion facilities in the Commonwealth have provided for over forty years. 

The original TRAP restrictions in Virginia were just one of over 75 attempts by politicians since 2010 to shut down women’s access to abortion.  I support the Board’s and the administration’s efforts to amend these politically-motivated restrictions.  We have to remember that Roe versus Wade still is part of the law of our country. The regulation of health care providers should be based in sound science and medicine, not politics, and should promote women’s health and safety.