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Issues
Issues
Stay tuned........an issue is coming soon!
As I See It
by Delilah Rumburg
Executive Director of Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape
Across the state, a political debate is brewing. It stems from rape victims and their due access to comprehensive health care. But in the midst of lawmaking, lobbying and deliberating, a crucial component is being forgotten - the victims.
The issue: Emergency contraception. The debate: Access to important medication to rape victims in emergency rooms across Pennsylvania. In Pennsylvania, less than 50 percent of hospitals provide a medically called emergency contraception (EC) to victims of sexual assault. EC, also known as the "morning after pill", is composed of a high dose of regular birth control pills and can prevent pregnancy if taken within 120 hours. Access to this medication can be vital to a rape victim's mental and physical well-being and crucial to her healing process.
While over 80 percent of the public fully supports EC access to victims, there is controversy and misunderstanding based on how EC functions. EC works by delaying ovulation or by preventing fertilization of the egg. While opponents argue that EC has a potential effect on the fertilized egg, recent scientific studies do not validate this concern.
What remains important is that EC is not an abortion pill and cannot work if the victim is already pregnant, nor can it be used to end a pregnancy. EC is a valid method for preventing pregnancy, not terminating it, according to all major medical associations and authorities, including the FDA.
The reality: It's sad but true - about 25,000 women annually become pregnant by rapists. There is a human side to this issue and it plays out in communities across Pennsylvania. It's a matter of record.
For example, in Western Pennsylvania, a young woman who was raped by a college student was denied access to EC as it was against hospital policy. In Southeast Pennsylvania, the mother of a 14 year-old rape victim who was denied access to EC in the emergency could not find a pharmacy that would fill the prescription given to her daughter by the doctor; for weeks they lived in fear and terror of pregnancy conceived in violence. And in Northwestern Pennsylvania, a woman reported to the emergency room for treatment after being raped. No one told her about EC, and weeks later, she learned that she was pregnant to the rapist.
Behind each "case" is the story of a woman who has been victimized by the devastating horror of rape. Common to each of them, is their inability to acquire critical access to emergency contraception due to the failing of "the system". And each shares the prolonged anxiety and terror that the act of violence committed against them could result in an unwanted pregnancy.
Sadly, the issue of administering emergency contraception to rape victims has become so politicized that the human factor has been forgotten and victims of this insidious crime has become lost in the debate. Yet, there is something that you can do. Under Pennsylvania law, hospitals and staff are not required to provide emergency contraception to rape victims, even if requested by the victim.
Efforts are under way to develop legislation that requires hospitals and health-care facilities to provide rape victims with both information and access to this vital medication as part of their treatment. Contact your legislators today and voice your support by letting them know that "EC in the ER is a victims rights issue!" ,Please pass this along to your groups, friends and relatives. Our voices must be heard!,Please pass this along to your groups, friends and relatives.
Our voices must be heard!
Please pass this along to your groups, friends and relatives.
Our voices must be heard!
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