Telemedicine Abortion the Latest Target of Conservative Lawmakers

Late last week, the Washington Post reported that conservative politicians were targeting a relatively new method of physician-distributed medical abortion pills. Commonly called “telemedicine abortion,” this method allows physicians to consult with women via a video link-up in a clinic. If the physician is satisfied that the woman understands the procedure, he or she can then use a remote control to open a drawer in the clinic that contains the pills. This method is currently only used in Iowa, where more than 2,000 women have used this service through Planned Parenthood of the Heartland since 2008.

Now, legislators in Iowa and Nebraska have announced that they will try to ban telemedicine abortions, and this week Nebraska senator Tony Fulton is expected to introduce a state bill that would require doctors to be physically present to administer the pill. (Never mind that telemedicine abortions aren’t currently available in his state.)

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Makeshift Bomb Thrown at Nebraska Planned Parenthood Clinic

100_0833Last week someone threw a Molotov cocktail into the parking lot of a Nebraska Planned Parenthood clinic. According to Action 3 News Omaha:

Lincoln police say someone attempted to throw a Molotov cocktail at the local Planned Parenthood clinic, but missed.

Instead, police say, the makeshift explosive fell just short of the building and burned pavement in the parking lot. It was reported about 11:20 p.m. Thursday.

The incident is under investigation. Police aren’t sure whether it’s linked to a recent string of crimes involving Molotov cocktails.

The Planned Parenthood fire came on the eve of a 2-day abortion protest at a clinic in Bellevue, which is about 45 miles northeast of Lincoln. [Read more...]

More Coverage of Carhart Clinic Defense

clinic escortFound a lot of additional tweets when I got up this morning about the Carhart clinic defense, so you’re getting a two-fer on the click list today.

Local TV coverage of the clinic action – Action 3 News Omaha
Operation Rescue Lies – Where the Revolution Begins
Abortion Protests in Bellevue – Omaha World-Herald

On a related note, here is a piece about clinic defense in Kentucky from the Socialist Worker.

Monday News Roundup – The Carhart Defense League Edition

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

For all of you who went to Nebraska this weekend to support Dr. Carhart, a big thank you from all of us who couldn’t be there! It was exciting to see on Twitter that ya’ll had a good turnout (200 pro-choicers on Saturday v. 65 antis according to the Twitter feeds), and that many locals seemed to be supportive.

Pro-choice Supporters “Undaunted” -CNN
Physicians Praise Dr. Carhart’s Supporters – Youtube
Kansas NOW’s Response to the “Truth Truck” – Twitter
Pro-choice Defenders Holding the Line in Nebraska – Twitpic
Operation Rescue Protesters Raise $7000 For Choice on Day 1 Alone – Salon.com

Protect Abortion Rights in Nebraska

LeRoy_Carhart__MDOperation Rescue has its newest target: Dr. Leroy Carhart in Nebraska. Dr. Carhart provides abortions and also performs late term abortions just as Dr. Tiller did in Wichita, KS.  Anti-choice extremists are launching an attack against Dr. Leroy because he is unafraid to perform abortion and protect the rights of the women and families who need them.

Dr. Carhart is taking a stand and we must stand with him.

Several groups are staging rallies and counter-protests: Kansas NOW, Nebraska NOW, and World Cant Wait.

Send a letter of support to Dr. Carhart on NARAL Pro-Choice America’s site, or on the NOW national site.

Dr. Carhart Needs You in Nebraska

Guest writer nicki2377 is a newly active feminist activist from Wichita, KS. After the assassination of Dr. George Tiller, she realized that believing in a woman’s right to choose wasn’t enough – sometimes you have to hold a sign in the pouring rain for the cause. She is currently working hard to make up for lost activist time.

Physicians that are willing to preform abortions in our country are subjected to a laundry list of harassment tactics. The attacks on the doctors and their employees is generally one of intimidation. Dr. LeRoy Carhart discussed the activities that have been directed at his clinic over the years in a recent Newsweek article:

“Carhart knows there are people who want him dead, too. A few days after Tiller’s murder, Carhart’s daughter received a late-night phone call saying her parents too had been killed. His clinic got suspicious letters, one with white powder. It’s been like this since Carhart started performing abortions in the late 1980s. On the same day Nebraska passed a parental-notification law in 1991, his farm burned down, killing 17 horses, a cat, and a dog (the local fire department was unable to determine the fire’s cause). The next day his clinic received a letter justifying the murder of abortion providers. His clinic’s sidewalks have been smeared with manure. Protesters sometimes stalk him in airports. The threats, the violence, now the assassination of his close friend—all of it has left Carhart undaunted, and the billboard-size sign over his parking garage still reads, in foot-high block letters, ABORTION & CONTRACEPTION CLINIC OF NEBRASKA. “They’re at war with us,” says Carhart of the anti–abortion activist who killed Tiller. “We have to realize this isn’t a difference of opinions. We need to fight back.”

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