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2008 Indiana legislative wrap up
March 18, 2008
The 2008 session of Indiana General Assembly, which closed on March 14, marks the third year in a row without the passage of any anti-choice legislation! Given the roller coaster ride we took this session, it may seem hard to believe, but it's true.
The highlights: All four pieces of Prevention First legislation were introduced. These bills to expand access to birth control and quality sex education are an Indiana first. Though, sadly, none of the four got a hearing, several of the ideas were debated when proposed as amendments to other legislation. Indiana legislators are beginning to realize the importance of prevention measures to Hoosiers everywhere. Planned Parenthood Advocates will continue to work with these legislators to secure the passage of Prevention First in the future.
The lowlights: Anti-choice legislation like pharmacist refusals moved further through the legislative process than ever before. See SBs 3, 146, and 187 for details on how several right-wing legislators continued to impose their personal beliefs on health care issues again this session, rather than representing the interest of voters.
Even worse, though, are the legislators who are merely using anti-choice ideas to kill unrelated bills which are otherwise worthy of debate and even passage. This "poison pill" strategy has taken a devastating toll on the legislative process. This session saw an unprecedented 19 unrelated bills affected by 28 amendments which would have detrimentally affected reproductive freedom. These "killer" or "poison pill" amendments propose controversial language solely as an attempt to silence debate on a bill and keep it from advancing.
Bills that died due to these poison pill amendments included a provision recognizing of out-of-state medical licenses in an emergency situation (as in the aftermath of a disaster like Hurricane Katrina) and ten bills on health insurance, including coverage of dialysis treatment, prosthetic devices and long term care. Indiana remains one of only five states without a law to protect citizens from hate crimes, because HB 1076 was again sabotaged by a poison pill. See the full list of 2008 bills affected by poison pill amendments.
It is clear that our rights as Hoosiers to make our own decisions about our personal lives and health mean less to some state lawmakers than campaign contributions. Women's health is being hijacked and used as a bargaining chip in the halls of our statehouse. It's high time legislators learned that women's health is too important to be used as a political toy.
If you are fed up with this kind of sneaky, underhanded behavior from our lawmakers, help us fight it. Our ideological opponents at Indiana Right to Life and Advance America outspend us several times over each year. When you become a member of Advocates, your membership contribution helps us fight for Prevention First legislation and elect pro-prevention Indiana officials.
Join the Planned Parenthood Action Network today for all the latest news and volunteer opportunities from Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana. For more information, email us.
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Birth Control Protection Needed Now
Planned Parenthood of Indiana recently held Free EC Days at nine health centers around the state (a tenth will happen in Madison April 8). Not everyone was happy, though, about the 270 doses of Emergency Contraception that were distributed. Indiana Right to Life executive director Mike Fichter told the press that he believes EC the equivalent of abortion—which it is NOT.
This is why Prevention First legislation is so important, especially the Birth Control Protection Act, which would separate contraception from regulations on abortion. Please continue showing support by signing the Prevention petition and becoming an Advocates member.
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 Indiana Senate passes triple threat to women's health
January 30, 2008
After a historic victory for birth control in the deadlocked January 24 vote on Senate Bill 3, author Sen. Jeff Drozda called the bill back to the senate floor on January 29. The legislation passed, 34-18, which is extremely unfortunate as it essentially grant pharmacists who "don't believe in birth control" the right to deny prescriptions or emergency contraception to Hoosier women.
With the addition of the passage of Senate Bills 146 and 187 through the Senate, the first of half of the legislative session seems to have lost sight of the stated goal of property tax relief. Planned Parenthood Advocates hopes that when these bills make their way to the House of Representatives, legislators realize that limiting access to contraception is a bad idea. We should instead be working on preventing unwanted pregnancies through increased sex education and birth control, as proposed in the Prevention First Legislation.
If you are fed up with legislation like what the Senate passed on January 29, you can help defeat it. Become an Advocates member today to help us fight anti-prevention legislation and legislators.
You can also help as a Capitol Activist during committee meetings in the upcoming weeks. We have been a strong presence at the statehouse due to the work of Capitol Activists during the first half of the session, but we must continue to act. Passing the Prevention First Legislation is STILL the best answer to limiting the number of unintended pregnancies that take place in Indiana.
If you are interested in being a Capitol Activist please email us! And if you have not already, be sure to sign up for email alerts via the Planned Parenthood Action Network to get the latest on the legislative session.
Historic vote for birth control in the Indiana Senate!
January 28, 2008
On January 24, Senate Bill 3, which would have granted pharmacists the right to deny birth control prescriptions to Hoosier women, failed to advance out of the Senate with a tie vote of 24-24.
The vote comes as a bit of a surprise, since it was only two days earlier that an amendment to protect birth control access was defeated 22-26. But more Indiana Senators than ever are recognizing that birth control is basic health care for women.
We have become a strong presence at the statehouse this session, thanks to the work and dedication of our Action Network members and Capitol Activists. As mentioned earlier, the Capitol Activists are acting as statehouse watchdogs, attending key committee hearings at the capitol. These volunteers wear their PREVENTION NOW t-shirts as a constant reminder to the committee members that we are here, we have a voice and we believe that passing the Prevention First legislation is the best answer to limiting the number of unintended pregnancies that take place in Indiana.
If you are interested in being a Capitol Activist and putting legislators on notice that we need to be working on Prevention First, please email us ASAP!
Senate Rules allow SB 3's author three days to re-call the bill for another vote if he thinks he has won over the two votes necessary to pass the bill. That means SB 3 could yet advance out of the Senate by 1/30/08. To get the latest on the legislative session, sign up for email alerts via the Planned Parenthood Action Network.
Capitol Activists needed!
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January 4, 2008
Happy New Year from Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana! The Indiana state legislative session starts on January 8, and we need your help with a new project. Rather than having a big statehouse rally like we did last February, this year, we want small groups of supporters to attend key committee hearings each week over the course of the legislative session. These Capitol Activists will wear the PREVENTION NOW t-shirts and stickers we printed for the rally and serve committee members a constant, steady reminder that Hoosiers want to see Prevention First legislation passed.
 Even if the key committees don't hear any reproductive rights bills on a given day, it would still be important for us to be there calling for Prevention First. But a pharmacy refusal clause, Senate Bill 3, has been scheduled for the session's first meeting of the Health and Provider Services committee on Wednesday, January 9, in the Senate Chambers at 9am.
We need to be there to let committee members know they should instead be working on Prevention First! If you can make it on January 9, or want to be a Capitol Activist later in the session, please email us ASAP. Planned Parenthood Advocates staff will meet you at the statehouse to direct you, supply you with a t-shirt and materials, and answer your questions.
Be sure to sign up for email alerts via the Planned Parenthood Action Network to get the latest on the legislative session.
Federal legislative update
Sadly, the U.S. Congress did not fix the birth control pricing problem in 2007. Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana and our national colleagues will continue to work for a solution to soaring birth control prices in 2008.
There was some bright news from the budget passed and signed by the President in last days of 2007: the new budget provides the largest increase in Title X family planning funding since 2000, a $16.8 million increase from the previous year. The final budget for Title X, the nation’s family planning program, will be $299.9 million dollars this year, and provide millions of women and families access to family planning and prevention services.
In addition, the final budget bill allocated no additional funds for dangerous abstinence-only programs that deny teens information about how to prevent unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections like HIV/AIDS. This is positive news for America’s teens, as federal funding should be directed toward comprehensive sex education programs that will keep teens healthy — by including information about abstinence as well as contraception, healthy communication, responsible decision making, and prevention of sexually transmitted infections.
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Join us for the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade
Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana and the Bloomington Community Advisory Board invite you to celebrate a legacy of reproductive freedom and embark on future reproductive justice activity.
Friday, January 18, 2008
5:30-8 p.m.
The Lodge
101 East 6th Street
Bloomington, IN
(map)
Join us to greet friends old and new, learn how to change Indiana's political and legislative landscape, and commemorate the 35th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision.
Wine and hors d'oeuvres will be served. RSVP today! Download the invitation (PDF) to share with your friends!
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2007 news • 2006 news
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