While an Florida bill bill (HB 5/SB 146), banning many abortions, is being fast-tracked in the Florida State Legislature, Plan C has partnered with the Tampa Bay Abortion Fund to launch a mobile campaign to bring the latest pro-abortion efforts to Floridians: abortion pills, particularly the “missed period pills.”
DETAILS ON HR5 CAN BE READ HERE
“We want everyone to understand they can take advantage of internet technology and the post office to access and complete an early abortion entirely from home. In many states, this is available through modern telehealth services with no legal or medical risk,” said Elisa Wells, Co-Director at Plan C (plancpills.org). “Unfortunately, Florida doesn’t allow doctors to provide abortion using telemedicine. But we know that people in Florida are still accessing pills online for self-managed abortion and want them to have complete information about how to use the pills and potential legal risk if they choose to do this.”
Plan C maintains an up-to-date Guide to Pills and refers people to the Repro Legal Helpline (NOTES below), a free resource that can help people understand potential legal risk in every state.
“Knowledge belongs to everyone, and being informed about the most basic best practices when it comes to your body remains a right to every person capable of pregnancy – whether abortion remains legal in this state or not,” said Kris Lawler, TBAF Board President. “We implore the Florida legislature to end restrictive laws, such as the Florida ban on telemedicine abortion, that strip pregnant people of bodily autonomy over their reproductive needs in the privacy and convenience of their own home by following the lead modeled in California and other states. Floridians deserve the same access to modern medical care that is available in other states.”
“We already live in the age of self-managed abortions and have been for two decades,” said Lawler. “Whether a person obtains their medication from a local abortion provider, or purchases them from a verified provider, the dosage, instructions and potential medical risks are all identical.”
“It’s kind of like the game of whack-a-mole,” said Sue Swayze Liebel, describing attempts to regulate the abortion industry as it continually comes up with ways to expand access to the procedure. She’s the state policy director for the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List and has been helping states craft legislation to put new safety precautions on the abortion pill. “I gotta hand it to them, they’re very clever … as would I be if I were trying to skirt health and safety protocols and legal regulations.” But, if nomenclature becomes a part of the pro-abortion strategy to avoid pro-life state laws, she doesn’t believe terms like “missed period pills” will work for very long.
Rebecca Parma said the law plays an important role in affecting the conscience of citizens. She’s the senior legislative associate for Texas Right to Life and has been tracking Plan C and other groups that are trying to bring abortion pills into Texas. She said the abortion industry’s switch to the language of “missed period pills” is an attempt to make abortive drugs more appealing. But the law can work to counter that public image, even if it can’t prevent all abortions.
“If things are legal, we tend to think they’re right,” she said. “And if things are illegal, that teaches us that they’re wrong. … That’s why our work is changing the laws but also changing hearts and minds, and we have to change society’s view of abortion as well.”
From the Repro Legal Helpline:
Here they promote the Judicial Bypass: “Every person, no matter how old they are, has the legal right to get an abortion in the United States. If you cannot or do not want to involve a parent in your abortion, another option is a judicial bypass. Judicial bypass is sometimes called judicial waiver and we use the term judicial bypass here.
“A judicial bypass means asking a judge to give you permission to get an abortion without involving a parent or legal guardian. This usually involves going to a court to fill out forms before setting up a meeting to talk to the judge.”
Do they have to pay? Answer: “You do not have to pay any money to get a judicial bypass. An abortion fund in your state might be able to help with costs related to your abortion. The National Network of Abortion Funds lists a directory of abortion funds…with a link to a list of countless groups paying for the abortion of others.
They discuss the possibility of a court hearing and state this as the answer to: “Will someone tell my parents…”
“In most states, your parent or guardian will not be told about the judicial bypass hearing. However, in some states, either the judge or the doctor has to notify your parent that you have a judicial bypass order or that you plan to have an abortion. This is not the case in most states with parental involvement laws.”
