By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
MONTGOMERY-‘The Alabama Political Reporter’ recently talked with Cheryl Ciamarra, the legislative director for Alabama Citizens for Life. Cheryl Ciamarra said that there are several good Pro-Life pieces of legislation that need to be acted on by the Alabama Legislature.
The Alabama Republican Party Legislators overwhelmingly all say that they are Pro-Life during their political campaigns (as are many Alabama Democratic Party legislators); but for a variety of reasons passing bills supporting those public positions is something that this overwhelmingly Pro-Life Alabama legislature has apparently not been able to accomplish. Director Ciamarra hopes that the Alabama legislature can change that in this legislative session.
Director Ciamarra says that one piece of legislation that the Pro-Life movement is supporting is HB739 which is sponsored by Representative April Weaver (R) from Alabaster. According to the group’s website HB739 would require that “Abortion providers would have to turn the screen to display the images to the pregnant woman before performing an abortion. This bill would not apply to an abortion performed in the case of a documented medical emergency. This bill provides scientifically accurate information objective pictorial information to women prior to consenting for an abortion to guarantee fully informed consent. Many women report they were told their baby was only tissue or a clump of cells and are misinformed as to the development of their child and are devastated later to learn the truth.” Rep. Weaver is a nurse and was named Outstanding Legislator of 2011 by the Alabama State Nurses Association.
The group also supports HB223 which is sponsored by Rep. Mary Sue McClurkin (R) from Indian Springs. HB223, titled the Womens Health Safety Act simply requires that Abortion Clinics in the state of Alabama be held to the same regulatory and safety standards as ambulatory surgical centers. Currently abortion mills in Alabama are required to follow the minimal regulations that a doctor’s office has to follow. The group’s web site said, “For too long, abortuaries in AL have provided substandard care to women. These regulations would change the substandard conditions found in some abortion mills; so that while abortion remains legal, at least, the healthcare provided to women will meet a minimum health safety standard. Abortion providers claim to be “women’s health clinics” to help women. Then why don’t they have to meet minimal outpatient safety standards required by law of all other medical facilities? Most consumers are unaware that abortion providers do not have to meet the same basic guidelines of other surgery providers.”
On Monday, the Alabama Department of Public Health rejected an application by Ochata Management LLC to assume the operating license of the New Woman All Women Health Care clinic. The Birmingham Clinic has a notoriously poor record of safety. The clinic is owned by Diane Derzis and was ordered to surrender its licence in March after they accidentally gave two women ten times the recommended dosage of vasopressin and they both had to be hospitalized. According to Director Ciamarra, Derzis has a history of running her “clinic” until someone gets hurts, then reopens the same facility under a new corporate identity.
The group also supports SB96 sponsored by Senator Gerald Allen (R) from Cottondale. The Abortion Drug Safety Act bans WebCam or Skype Abortions. Chemical abortions are the fastest growing type of abortions. The group argues that the procedure is unsafe for women because there is no doctor present, no physical exam is required, and there is an increased risk of hemorrhage and bleeding. According to Alabama Citizens for Life 14 women have died in the United States alone from Ru-486 (mifepristone). A “webcam abortion” is an abortion carried out through video conferencing to advise and administer mifepristone. Mifepristone is a progesterone inhibitor generally used in combination with the steroid hormone prostaglandin F2alpha, which is commonly used to synchronize estrous in cattle.
The group also supports the Healthcare Conscience Bill. In the Alabama Senate the bill is SB105 and is sponsored by Senator Cam Ward (R) from Alabaster. In the Alabama House it is HB375 sponsored by Mary Sue McClurkin. The bill would give doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals the right to elect to refuse to perform or participate in abortions, sterilizations, human cloning, and embryonic stem cell research if it would violate their consciences. They would have to provide that in writing at the time of their initial start date.
To learn more about Alabama Citizens for Life visit their website:
