In 2013, the Virginia Board of Health finalized onerous and medically-unnecessary restrictions designed to close women’s health centers that provide comprehensive reproductive health care, including cancer screenings, birth control, and safe, legal first-trimester abortion. Right now the Virginia Department of Health is reviewing these restrictions, and the Board of Health will meet on September 18 to discuss them. It’s absolutely critical that the Board understands the devastating impact that these restrictions – and the closure of health centers – will have on thousands of Virginia women.
That’s why we are proud to stand with Amanda, Barbara, and Randi. They are Virginia residents who rely on our women’s health centers for medical care. Amanda will be speaking at the Board of Health meeting on September 18, and we want to make sure she and Barbara have the weight of hundreds of Virginians’ voices behind them.
Read Amanda, Barbara, and Randi’s stories below, then add your name below to stand with them and the thousands of Virginians who rely on women’s health centers!
"I use birth control to manage a medical condition and because I am not ready to be a parent right now. I am unemployed and not eligible for the insurance under the Affordable Care Act, since I fall into the coverage gap and Virginia refuses to expand Medicaid. I have tried to go to sliding scale clinics offered by the state, only to be turned away in tears because I live with my father-in-law and they considered his income mine. I rely on the Planned Parenthood health center in Richmond for the affordable birth control I need. If Planned Parenthood and other Virginia women's health centers were forced to close due to TRAP restrictions, I would not be able to access these critical medical services."
- Amanda
"My name is Barbara and I am a survivor of cervical cancer. I went in for a routine well woman exam and Planned Parenthood found my cervical cancer cells. Their staff did two separate procedures as we determined how far it had progressed. The staff was so caring and took the time to answer questions, give me needed support, and ultimately find an Oncologist. I will always remember how cared for they made me feel. That was 5 years ago and I'm healthy!
Because of women’s health centers like Planned Parenthood, I was able to get the care I needed during a scary time in my life. Women in Virginia rely on health centers for life-saving cancer screenings, STD prevention and treatment, birth control and education. It’s time for the Board of Health to right a wrong and ensure Virginia women have access to safe and legal abortion. It’s time to fix TRAP."
-Barbara
“I have health insurance but I choose to come to Planned Parenthood because I found out they offer a wide variety of health care services, including family planning, primary care, and cancer screenings. I feel comfortable with the doctors and the staff and have accessed primary care in addition to gynecological care. If women’s health care centers in Virginia were to close because of TRAP, I would lose access to a place where I feel comfortable and well-taken care of.”
-Randi
Join us in supporting Amanda:
I'm standing with Virginia women. We all share a commitment to ensuring patient health and safety. But we have to ask ourselves, who is most competent to set standards – doctors? Or politicians?
Medical experts and a majority of Virginians like me oppose the restrictions designed to close women’s health centers currently before the Virginia Department of Health. These restrictions will endanger women's health because they are medically unnecessary and are designed to close quality women’s health centers, cutting off access to abortion, family planning, cancer screenings, and primary care. If they are not amended, thousands of Virginia women and families will lose access to critical medical care.
I urge the Commissioner and Board of Health to join me in supporting Virginia women and amend these politicized restrictions to rely on evidence-based medicine.
