Republicans are constantly trying to control what women can do with their own bodies, and a dangerous bill introduced by Ohio state House Rep. John Becker is another attempt. While banning private insurance coverage of abortion and, many argue, of contraceptives, it also includes a section describing a nonexistent medical procedure that is pure fantasy.
And Becker says the bill also speaks to coverage of ectopic or tubal pregnancies where the fertilized egg attaches outside of the womb.
“Part of that treatment would be removing that embryo from the fallopian tube and reinserting it in the uterus so that is defined as not an abortion under this bill," Becker explains.
“That doesn’t exist in the realm of treatment for ectopic pregnancy. You can’t just re-implant. It’s not a medical thing," says Jaime Miracle, deputy director of NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio.
And the bill is dangerous enough that an OB-GYN (you know, an actual doctor and experienced researcher) took to Twitter to explain to Mr. Becker in a tweet storm why his bill is so ill-advised and wrong-headed.
This bill could literally kill women, as it removes insurance coverage for treatment and surgery that treats ectopic pregnancy. On top of this, women of color and with low income would be the most affected. Yes—it’s always the most vulnerable among us that Republicans enjoy punishing.
Let’s hope this bill eventually dies, but since Republicans basically do nothing of substance for their constituents but pander to the most extreme, I doubt this will happen. Remember this when you enter the voting booth in 2020, because it’s Republicans like Becker that need to be retired.