The Voice - Student Newspaper

Gov. Brewer's constraints on abortion and Planned Parenthood

By Mary Allan
Reporter, The VOICE

Gov. Jan Brewer, R-Arz., signed into law some tight, new restrictions on access to abortion in Arizona this July. This act brings her into direct conflict with the mission that Planned Parenthood of Arizona (PPA) has had since 1937, to help people manage their own fertility.

This is not the first time the governor has had run-ins with the Planned Parenthood organization.

In fact, two members of the Governor's Commission on Women's and Children's Health were PPA Chairwoman, Dr. Candace Lew and the president and CEO Bryan Howard, who have both since resigned in protest of the acts that Brewer has taken against PPA.

Once such act being, Brewer dropped PPA from a health fair that her administration was sponsoring.

Brewer and her administration have repeatedly ignored and rejected PPA's requests to meet and describe the full scope of services the organization provides.

The biggest problem that PPA has with Brewer is House Bill 2564, which she just signed.

They believe this is an attack on women's reproductive rights. Some of the bans in this bill include: Medical workers and pharmacists may object to providing the services or medications regarding contraceptives or abortions, nurses and non-physicians will be restricted from performing abortions.

Also included in the bill is a 24-hour waiting period will be created for abortions and abortion inducing prescriptions.

Her decisions on the abortion bills are a compliment from her predecessor, Democrat Janet Napolitano, who vetoed similar measures passed during previous legislative sessions.

Her pro- life supporters are very happy. "Governor Brewer moved Arizona in the right direction," said Cathi Herrod of the Center for Arizona Policy, one of the groups advocating for the passage of the measures restricting abortion, according to the Arizona Republic.

Planned Parenthood objected strongly stating that "the policies Gov. Brewer and the administration have adopted are driven by political considerations, given that they squarely contradict the recommendations from public health leaders including the Arizona Board of Nursing, the Arizona College of Emergency Physicians, the Arizona Nurses Association and the Arizona Public Health Association. "

PPA sent a letter to Gov. Brewer citing that the governor's political priorities outweigh women's health priorities. According to the Tucson Citizen, "Brewer said in a 2006 candidate survey that she favored prohibiting abortion except when the woman's life is in danger and requiring mandatory disclosures and a 24-hour waiting period for abortions."

The battles of these two entities are probably far from over.