"To the Editor"
“Abortion is a bad thing, and we need fewer of them”- President Bill Clinton. Most people would agree that life is precious and that anytime it is necessary to terminate a pregnancy, it should be safe, legal, and rare. In a perfect world every pregnancy would be planned and have no complications. Sadly, there are circumstances that put a woman’s life in danger such as an ectopic (tubal) pregnancy. Then there are the victims of rape or incest whose physical and mental health are risked by a subsequent pregnancy.
Our current Kansas Constitution values and protects women and families in these situations by allowing some exceptions, but Kansas law does regulate abortions quite strongly. Did you know that all abortions in Kansas must be performed by a licensed physician? That abortions after 22 weeks are prohibited, except for health endangerment? Partial-birth and abortions based on gender selection are prohibited, and private insurance coverage is limited to cases of life endangerment, unless specific coverage is purchased? Public funding is available ONLY in cases of life endangerment, rape, or incest. Patients are required to undergo an ultrasound, and have a 24-hour waiting period after state-directed counseling before receiving an abortion. Parental consent is required for minors to receive an abortion. Even so, the option to terminate is allowed, but the choice is personal.
You can see that terminating a pregnancy in Kansas is not easy, but is possible under strict, legal, and safe circumstances. If your wife or daughter were in a life-threatening pregnancy, wouldn’t you do whatever you can or go where ever medical help is available? This is what people in other states are facing and explains why desperate folks are coming to Kansas to get the medical procedures that should be available in their own states.
Now that the US Supreme Court has re-interpreted the 50 yr-old Roe vs. Wade decision, the only thing that is protecting women’s options in Kansas is our current Kansas Constitution. If the “Value Them Neither”, “No Choice” Amendment passes on August 2, we can expect to see Kansans who can afford to will be traveling to other countries or states for medical treatment that may not have the same safety requirements. Really desperate people, particularly the young, may consider suicide, or try a DIY project, like 50 years ago. To criminalize a rape or incest victim does not “value” her, or the unwanted child she is forced to bear.
The Kansas Constitution only protects a woman’s right to seek a safe, legal abortion, with all its restrictions, which will be lost if the Amendment passes. Personal health decisions about reproductive health should be left to a woman, her doctor and her loved ones, NOT politicians in Topeka.
You can be against abortion personally, and also vote against the “No Choice”Amendment.
Our Kansas Constitution is just fine the way it is now. I am voting NO on the Amendment on August 2.
Dee Anne Grummon
Great Bend, Kansas