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Vance's abortion bill passes state committee with both props and complaints from advocates
Women's health and pro-choice advocates have praised most parts of state Sen. Pat Vance's bill - but say it still has problems.
Vance's abortion bill passes state committee with both props and complaints from advocates
On Wednesday, state Sen. Pat Vance's bill regulating abortion clinics, which was written in the wake of the Kermit Gosnell case, passed out of committee.
Women's health and pro-choice advocates have praised most parts of Vance's bill — noting that it will allow patients to make complaints about abortion providers anonymously, create a licensing system and guarantee regular inspections.
"The basic idea behind it is one they support," says Sue Frietsche, senior staff attorney of the Women's Law Project, adding that abortion providers were "outraged, frustrated and worried" when they came across Gosnell patients who tried to complain to the state's Health Department, but were allegedly turned away because they wanted to speak anonymously.
Still, women's health advocates argue that there are problems with Vance's bill.
Frietsche claims that while good abortion providers are happy to comply with regular inspections, Vance's bill would basically give the state's health department carte blanche "to do lengthy, disruptive, intrusive inspections" — which could be abused under certain anti-abortion leadership, she says.
She adds that, under the new bill, abortion providers would be the only medical facilities in the state that must be inspected after a "serious event" is reported to the health department — another factor that pro-choice advocates fear might lead to abuse.
Frietsche is quick to add that she doesn't believe the current health department secretary or state inspectors are abusive, but says that "somewhere down the road this bill could be a very potent tool."
As of press time, Vance declined to comment.
Carol Petraitis, of the Pennsylvania American Civil Liberties Union, is also concerned that Vance's bill could threaten patients' and employees' privacy. The bill gives "full and free" access to all abortion clinic records and employees.
Still, Petraitis calls Vance's bill a "good-faith effort to make sure there are no more Gosnells."
Conversely, pro-choice advocates have strongly criticized another bill drawn up in the wake of Gosnell, written by Rep. Matt Baker, which they claim could shut down every clinic in the state.
Baker says his bill "will provide the highest possible level of health care and safety for women."
There was speculation that an amendment might be added to Vance's bill that would have made it more like Baker's — but that, say women's advocates, has not occured.
Only one Senator in the health committee voted against Vance's bill yesterday — Bob Mensch, the same person who Baker said might pen such an amendment.
Vance's bill will now go to the Appropriations Committee, and then onto the Senate for a full vote.
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