FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 6, 2007

Contact: Peggy Hamill, State Director, (262) 796-1111, cell: (414) 416-0489
or Matt Sande, Director of Legislative Affairs (262) 796-1111, cell: (262) 352-0890

EC Hospital Mandate Forces Chemical Abortion

Pro-Life Wisconsin strongly opposes soon-to-be introduced legislation that would force Wisconsin hospitals to provide “emergency contraception” to alleged victims of sexual assault.

“So-called ‘emergency contraception’ will often act to cause a chemical abortion, and Pro-Life Wisconsin strongly opposes legislation that mandates Wisconsin hospitals to provide it,” said Peggy Hamill, state director of Pro-Life Wisconsin. “The bill would force hospital personnel to violate their consciences or contradict their medical judgment by requiring them to provide the morning-after pill, a known abortion-causing drug, to rape victims. Let there be no doubt that this is an abortion bill, and we strongly urge both the Senate and the Assembly to reject it.”

Also known as the morning-after pill, emergency contraception is basically two high doses of the birth control pill taken within 72-hours of sexual intercourse. It can work in three ways: to suppress ovulation, to inhibit the mobility of sperm and, if fertilization occurs, to irritate the lining of the uterus so that a newly conceived child (human embryo) is unable to implant in the womb, thus starving and dying. This last action is pre-implantation chemical abortion.

“Pro-Life Wisconsin sympathizes with victims of sexual assault who desire to prevent a pregnancy, and we would support, for these women, treatments that truly prevent conception,” said Hamill. “However, it is extremely difficult to determine whether or not fertilization has occurred at the time emergency contraception is directed to be taken. A standard pregnancy test cannot accurately make such a determination. We must always err on the side of protecting innocent human life.”

The legislation would specifically require hospitals to inform an alleged victim of sexual assault about so-called “emergency contraception,” then offer it and provide it upon her request.

“Wisconsin law protects the right of hospitals to refuse to participate in morally objectionable practices such as abortion and sterilization,” said Matt Sande, Pro-Life Wisconsin’s director of legislation. “This provision appears to be in conflict with current state statutes because of the abortion-causing effect of so-called ‘emergency contraceptive’ drugs, as well as with our state constitution, which expressly protects the right of conscience.”

Not only can emergency contraception kill a tiny preborn life in its earliest stages, but it can also harm women. Plan B, the brand name of the morning-after pill, is associated with blood clot formation and a heightened risk of ectopic pregnancy. The common side-effects of the morning-after pill (nausea and abdominal pain) are also the symptoms of an ectopic pregnancy and could therefore mask the presence of this potentially life-threatening condition. Importantly, there are no long-term studies to show whether women will be permanently damaged, or risk such diseases as cancer, from these chemicals being given in such high doses.

“A child conceived in rape is a human being and deserves legal protection despite the horrific circumstance of conception,” said Hamill. “The personhood of a child is not contingent upon the circumstances surrounding his or her conception. We need to offer compassion to all the innocent parties in a sexual assault. Assisting rape victims who want to place their children for adoption and advocating counseling programs for victims as well as providing financial, material and moral support for mothers who decide to keep their children is the truly compassionate response.”

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