All who bought the line of BS being pushed by Attorney General Ken Cucinelli and Supervisor John Stirrup need to be aware of the following letter I received from NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia. Without the AG’s ‘interpretation,’ Virginia has the tools, ways and means to regulate unscrupulous abortion providers. Virginia always has retained the ability to stop physicians and clinical practices not in keeping with high medical standards.
Dear Moon:
We recently learned that physician Steven Brigham, the owner of abortion provider American Women’s Services, which lists offices in Fairfax and Virginia Beach, has been accused of egregious medical misconduct in other states.
Dr. Brigham’s egregious and unscrupulous actions are wholly inconsistent with the excellent record of safety established by other providers in the field of women’s reproductive health care services.
We support the highest standards for women’s health, which is why abortion remains one of the safest surgical procedures performed in the United States. The charges against Dr. Brigham are serious, appalling and out of line with the values for which we stand. We call on state authorities to use the power of current state laws to ensure that Dr. Brigham is never allowed to provide services to women again.Fortunately, in Virginia, abortion care is highly regulated through the Board of Health Professions, Board of Medicine, OSHA and other regulatory bodies and laws. We have seen the effectiveness of current Virginia regulations, as one of Brigham’s associates was recently denied a medical license in the Commonwealth as she had her license suspended elsewhere. The heinous actions of Dr. Brigham do not point to the need for further regulations targeting abortion providers, but for states to prosecute Dr. Brigham under current statutes.
We support the efforts of the National Abortion Federation over the years calling for investigation of Brigham and his clinics. NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia has worked and will continue to work to make sure Virginians have access to the highest standard of abortion care.
If you have questions about the situation or want to know how to talk about it with your friends, please contact us.
For choice,
Tarina Keene
Executive Director
Hopefully, our board of supervisors, the Manassas City Council, and Governor McDonnell will see Cucinelli’s gestures for what they are–an attempt to regulate abortion providers right out of business. Those seeking further regulation need to familiarize themselves with current regulations rather than preying upon people’s fears and emotions.
Moon–your “current regulations” link is wrong. 12 VAC 5-410 has nothing to do with regulating physicians’ offices providing first term abortion services. This is the law that AG Cuccinelli is trying to stretch into a “one size fits all” law that would require these offices to meet the same standards as inpatient hospitals and outpatient surgical hospitals. The Virginia Board of Medicine regulates and licenses physicians. It might be better to cite:
http://www.dhp.state.va.us/medicine/
When Cuccinelli was a senator, he tried a similar tactic with SB 146 (1994) which never made it out of committee. He was told by then AG Robert McDonnell that physicians’ offices were exempt. The rules that were previously included in 12 VAC 5-410 were rescinded when Chuck Robb was governor–1984.
Just thought you would like to know.
Thank you very much, George. I will take my link down and put up this one.
Applause, Applause! Excellent post!
I for one, with all the push by the AG for regulation, simply support consolidating all the Virgina Code and VAC into one single published book. Too much of what our fine Commonwealth has for rules, regulations, policies, et.al. is spread across a zillion links and a pain in the tush to find. Abortion Clinics are fully regulated under about 14 different aspects, and having one published reference would at least prove the point the State hs the rules, and then they should follow them
Too bad so many politicians try to push for greater regulation all under the guise of protecting women’s health. Oh BS. It is really all about restriction. They should just admit it.
John Stirrup stupidly said he was offering up his ‘resolution’ because the clinic in the City was there and people from the county went there. Oh PUH-Leeze. Does he think we are that stupid as to believe him?
Two other links for current regulations are http://www.dhp.virginia.gov/medicine/medicine_laws_regs.htm and http://www.dhp.virginia.gov/dhp_laws/default.htm.
Guess who is coming to town.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/10/AR2010111004032.html
Welcome Joe, Thanks for the links.
New Kid, I wonder where this new doctor will land. Why am I betting Maryland?
@Raymond Beverage
Some sort of compendium would be great,but don’t expect it will ever happen–too many oxen will get gored.
@Joseph Richards
Thanks Joseph Richards.
BTW complication rate for first trimester abortions–.3%. Attempts to link abortion to breast cancer–NIH had 100 of the country’s best look at it–NO LINK. Stirrup is full of plain old fashioned CRAP.
@New Kid in town
Don’t expect him to show up in Virginia. Too many laws/regulations/rules about second and third trimester abortions. Very limited and only in a hospital.
@George
That Steve Hunt who is running for Cucinelli’s old state senate seat also used to spread that same breast cancer bs. He used to be one of those fake clinic directors, I think.
Deplorable to try that scare tactic.
@Moon-howler
Here is part of an e-mail I got from the ACLU regarding what is waiting at the next session of the Virginia General Assembly–
“There are two bills that have been pre-filed, that will come up in this upcoming legislative session that we will be working hard to combat. The first, HB 1428, requires all abortion clinics, defined as any facility other than a hospital or an ambulatory surgery center in which 25 or more first-trimester abortions are performed in any 12-month period, to be licensed and regulated by the Board of Health. The second, HB 1440, construes the word “person” under Virginia law to include unborn children, including, but not limited to, Va. Code Ann. 8.01-50 which covers how and when actions for death by wrongful act can be brought. ”
HB1428 is a rehash of a bill that Cuccinelli tried to get passed when he was a senator. It never made it out of committee. Noted above in #1. Moe Davis would know better than I, but HB1440 would seem to be contra to Roe v Wade in which case it should never get out of committee but if it does, I hope the governor is smart enough not to sign it and thus avoid embroiling the Commonwealth in a lawsuit.
I guess the Cuccinelli law will be more powerful than the 14th amendment which clearly defines personhood.
Too bad the attorney general and the delegate assembly have so little to do. The economy, the jobs, those things that keep the state on the move.
@Moon-howler
Or perhaps DC since it has the most lax rules on second and third trimester abortions.
@Moon-howler
I hope people are making their feelings known other than just on election day and on blogs. I am sure yours gets read because you have mentioned it had you manage to make Google! But how many politicians read them? Do any of the state or national representatives? I don’t know. Do you have any feel for that?
Thank you, MH, for writing about this issue.
Please feel free to let me know any time reproductive rights issues need to be addressed. They will certainly get blog time from me.
@George S. Harris
I guess you shouldn’t reply to your own posting, but couldn’t figure out another way to do this. The sponsors of the two bills I mentioned @11 are: HB 1428 is sponsored by Richard Bell and HB 1440 is sponsored by R.G. Marshall (our own Bob Marshall–long time and fervent Catholic anti-abortionist). Neither has co-sponsors listed yet. The latter is pending referral to committee.
Now is the time to start writing, particularly if your delegate is someone other than these two. Also a note to your senator would be a great idea.
I fear any letter of mine would fall on deaf ears. I need to adopt a delegate.
HB 1440 is a very dangerous bill to be passing. It is also in violation of established federal law.
Marshall is obsessed. He has also tried to get the word ‘conception’ changed to ‘fertilization’ in the past, which would make birth control pills illegal if Roe were overturned.
http://www.richmondsunlight.com/bill/2011/hb1440/fulltext/