Last May, when Missouri's unelected governor, Mike Parson, signed a law banning abortion after the eighth week of pregnancy with no exceptions for cases of rape and incest-- just one of a whole slew of anti-Choice laws passed by state's with GOP governors and Republican-controled legislatures that passed since Trump appointed two anti-Choice Supreme Court judges. The states are competing to see which case overturns Roe v. Wade. In Missouri's case, though, a federal judge blocked Parson from enforcing the obviously unconstitutional law 2 months ago. The Republicans struck back by refusing to renew the license for Missouri’s last remaining abortion clinic, which could make Missouri the first state to win the "we have no abortion providers" sweepstakes. Earlier this week, Robert Langellier, reporting for Reuters, noted that the state of that clinic is in the hands of an arbiter. The hearing began Monday and are expected to continue for a few more days.
Missouri health officials earlier this year declined to renew the clinic’s license on the grounds that it failed to meet their standards, which included mandatory interviews with several physicians involved in what the health department said were multiple life-threatening abortions at the clinic.Planned Parenthood officials have said they do not directly employ all the clinic’s staff and cannot force them to give interviews. The organization has said the state’s effort to close the clinic is politically motivated, which the state denies.Abortion is one of the most divisive issues in the United States, with opponents citing religious beliefs to declare it immoral, while abortion-rights activists say the procedure is legally protected and that bans rob women of control over their bodies and futures.Missouri is one of 12 states to pass laws restricting abortion access this year, some aimed at provoking a U.S. Supreme Court review of the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that recognized a woman’s constitutional right to terminate her pregnancy.Last week, Planned Parenthood opened an abortion clinic just 13 miles (21 km) from the St. Louis clinic in Fairview Heights, Illinois, capable of treating up to 11,000 patients per year.“While we continue the fight to maintain access in Missouri, we are excited to expand our abortion services in Illinois,” Colleen McNicholas, chief medical officer of Planned Parenthood’s southwest regional chapter, said in a statement.
Blue America has just one candidate so far this cycle, Kathy Ellis and we asked her for a perspective from her rural southeast district which is already very far from the state's one clinic-- and very red. Below is her guest post. If you'd like to help her campaign, please consider contributing by clicking on the 2020 congressional thermometer on the right.
Missouri is a crumbling state. From the Republican supermajority state legislature’s refusal to expand Medicaid to the constant attacks on working people at the local, state, and federal levels, the only hope for our state is new leadership.Recently, one area of our state that has garnered national attention is its treatment of those seeking abortions. Let’s lay the groundwork: there is currently only one facility providing abortions in Missouri, and it’s in St. Louis. The state is constantly trying to close it by implementing absurd regulations and laws, such as hallway width laws and a requirement that providers have admitting privileges to local hospitals, most of which are religiously-run. Its most recent attack is even more sinister: earlier this year, the Missouri Department of Health claimed they found “deficient practices” at the only abortion clinic in the state, Reproductive Health Services of Missouri which is in a Planned Parenthood affiliate. These claims were never backed up with evidence, but as a result, the clinic is currently-- as we speak-- involved in a hearing that will determine the fate of the clinic’s license. As a part of this hearing, it came to light that the Director of the Health Department [Randall Williams] has been using a spreadsheet to track patients’ menstrual cycles. It’s all very disturbing, to say the least.But let’s expand this conversation. As mentioned, there is one clinic who provides abortions in the entire state, and it’s located in St. Louis. I am running for Missouri’s 8th Congressional District, a 30-county district south of St. Louis. The District is massive. It takes 4.5 hours to get across it, and 3 hours to get to its southernmost point. While Missouri has an abortion clinic, it is almost completely inaccessible to the people in the 8th District. With the strict restrictions at the state level, including a 72-hour waiting period, in-person, medically inaccurate abortion “counseling,” and a same provider consent rule, it’s almost impossible for a person in the 8th District to receive an abortion in this state. Not to mention-- the 8th has one of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates in the country, and rural hospitals are rapidly closing. Not only is there not abortion access in the 8th, there is also not basic healthcare access.The only hope for the 8th, and for our state, is new leadership at every level. We must expand Medicaid at the state level. We must repeal the Hyde Amendment at the federal level. When elected, I’ll do everything to protect Roe v. Wade and a person’s right to choose. I’m a proud, pro-choice candidate, and I’ve never shied away from that, despite the red, rural District that I’m running in. It’s time to change the narrative: everyone, regardless of zip code, gender, age, or income should have access to the healthcare they need, when they need it. This includes abortion access.
And, yes, this is very much related; just think about it for a minute:
