Demand Results, Not Rhetoric, On Abortion

It is time for our politicians to stop using abortion as a political football and come together to find practical solutions to America’s high abortion rates. With 1 in 5 pregnancies ending in abortion and the number of abortions remaining unchanged from 32 years ago, we need to focus on results, not rhetoric. Millions of Americans, pro-choice and pro-life, Republicans, Democrats, and Independents, want their leaders to find common ground on how to address this important issue. In fact, the appeal of this approach is so strong that of the over 3,000 ads submitted for the bi-partisan “Pollie Awards” given for the best political ads, this radio spot done by realabortionsolutions.org was named one of the four most compelling political ads of 2008.

Fortunately there are lawmakers who are already working on ways to drastically reduce abortion rates in America by tackling the root causes that lead to abortion to help promote adoption, prevent unintended pregnancies, and support women who choose to carry their pregnancy to term. The Reducing the Need for Abortion and Supporting Parents Act, or the Ryan-DeLauro bill, is ground breaking legislation that has been proposed in Congress. This common ground bill focuses on reducing the need for abortion by addressing its root causes. The bill would:

  • Provide financial assistance for adoption
  • Expand Medicaid and S-CHIP coverage to provide pregnant women with the healthcare they need (and the lack of which is one of the most cited reasons women give for having an abortion)
  • Support new parents by providing training and nutritional assistance
  • Provide grants to expand sex education and programs designed to decrease teen pregnancy and teen births
  • Reauthorize appropriations for after-school programs
  • Expand access to contraception and family planning services for low-income women
  • Prevent private insurance companies from treating pregnancy as a pre-existing condition and denying coverage of medical expenses
  • Prevent domestic violence and sexual assault
  • Support parenting students so that they do not have to choose between their child and their education

1.2 million abortions each year is a tragedy no matter where you stand on abortion. It is time we move beyond the bumper sticker slogans toward common ground solutions.



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