CRJ #7 - Women’s Health and Reproductive Freedoms

Health is a very important concept in women’s lives. It is a very private issue which a woman should be able to determine and manage on her own. However, it has become an area in which the government, health industry, and many men have tried to invade. They have attempted to do this through several Supreme Court rulings and health procedure administering.

It was a long struggle through which women had to fight to achieve the legalization of abortion. Although some states had already reformed their abortion laws over the years, in January 1973, the Roe vs. Wade case passed which overturned all states’ ban on abortion. This ruling “held that the U.S. Constitution protects a woman’s decision to terminate her pregnancy and allowed first-trimester abortions on demand. It declared that only after the fetus is viable, capable of sustained survival outside the woman’s body with or without artificial aid, may the states control abortion” (pg 327). This ruling determined that a fetus does not have civil rights because it is not a legal person. It also did not decide religious or philosophical decisions about when a fetus actually becomes a person. Ever since the Roe vs. Wade ruling has passed, there has been a general chipping away at women’s rights to access a safe and legal abortion. The Hyde Amendment allowed states the right to deny the use of Medicaid funds for abortion. This amendment limited some women’s rights because they now had to be able to afford an abortion on their own in order to have one. The Beal vs. Doe ruling in 1977 and the Harris vs. McRae ruling in 1980 supported the Hyde Amendment by enabling states to prohibit Medicaid funds to be used for abortions and by allowing Congress to forbid states to use federal funds to pay for abortion services, respectively. Rulings continued to chip away at women’s rights when in 1989 the Webster vs. Reproductive Health Services case said that a state had the right to deny the use of “public facilities or public employees from assisting with abortions, to prevent counseling concerning abortion if public funds were involved, and to allow parental notification rights” (pg 327). There are many more cases which tried to overtake women’s decision making; however, the final one that will be discussed was the “Partial Birth” Abortion Ban.

An intact dilation and extraction (D&X) has been dubbed a “partial birth”. This is because the administration determined that a D&X is an blatant act to “kill a partially delivered fetus” (pg 329). Previously, a similar ban that was attempted to be used in Nebraska had been declared unconstitutional; however, after the declaration of the “Partial Birth” Abortion Ban, 23 states were able to pass laws banning this procedure. It has historically been a very controversial topic. People that supported the ban argued that a D&X is a horrific act and is never necessary to save a woman’s life. Those that supported a D&X said that it is usually only used when a mother’s life or health is in danger or when a baby is in very poor health. They especially expressed the fact that it was also a very infrequently performed procedure. I believe that the D&X may seem a bit frightening, but numerous other medical procedures give the same image. To my understanding, it seems that a D&X is only used in necessary situations, so it should be allowed. I also think that an abortion should solely be a woman’s choice and the government should not be able to intervene with her decision. Therefore, I support all forms of abortion and believe that it is a mother’s issue not a government issue. There are others that agree with my opinion. After the declaration of the ban, three U.S. district courts declared the ban unconstitutional because there is no exception in case of the poor health of a woman. These court rulings were affirmed by three courts of appeals; however, the federal government sill appealed these decisions. In 2006, the Supreme Court agreed to hear the Stenberg vs. Carhart case and the Planned Parenthood case. Unfortunately, in 2007 the Supreme Court determined that the ban did not violate the Constitution.

This decision is sad because recent Gallup polls show that about 50% of voters consider themselves pro-choice, who are in favor or women’s choice to decide, while only 36% are pro-life, who are against almost all use of abortion. I can only hope that future court rulings and health procedure decisions will soon move into the hands of a woman. I really do not understand how it is legal to ban abortions under our Constitution.