I have an odd little hobby. Every year, starting in the middle of January, I obsessively log on to the Iowa Legislature’s website and pore over all the bills that our Congress Critters file over the course of the session. I look for the ones I find interesting or noteworthy — both good and bad — and rant about them to my friends. I do occasionally get some sideways glances as people slowly back away, but it is for your own good.
I tend to concentrate on a few broad categories: church/state separation and Christian privilege, Constitutional encroachments, bigotry, racism, voting rights, — basically anything a good humanist ought to care about.
As they say, all politics is local. If you don’t know what is happening in the Capitol building, your Congress Critters will bite you in the ass because you weren’t paying attention.
Anyway, it’s that time of year. It’s the first week of the session and oh boy, have I got a doozy to kick things off.
House File 2026, introduced by Holly Brink, a Republican from Mahaska County. This bill is “An Act relating to requirements for physicians providing services at an ambulatory surgical center, and providing penalties.” https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/publications/LGI/88/HF2026.pdf
HF 2026 requires all physicians providing surgical services at Ambulatory Surgical Centers to have admitting privileges at a local hospital. Well that sounds innocuous. It sounds like Ms. Brink only cares about patient safety. Who could possibly object to that?
Well I do.
This bill is about abortion and nothing else. It is about eliminating access to safe abortion services and reproductive health care. It is about making it too expensive for Planned Parenthood and related clinics to function in the State of Iowa. It is a TRAP law: Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers. I’ve seen similar laws pop up in other states in recent years, but this one is unusual in that it doesn’t say the word “abortion” anywhere. Not once. It is sneaky and clever, and it’s author clearly hopes that no one will pay close enough attention to realize it’s true purpose until they’ve sent it to the Governor.
Abortion is incredibly safe. Complications requiring hospital admission occur in 0.3% of all abortions. Simply carrying a pregnancy to term carries 14 times more risk to the mother than that. But reproductive health clinics tend to be controversial and frequently in the news. Hospitals don’t like that. Physicians who serve abortion clinics are kept at arms length and rarely given admitting privileges. That is what makes this a TRAP law.
Call your State Legislators and tell them not to support this bill. If they are Republican, tell them you see through their ruse. If they are Democrats, make sure they know that this bill is an anti-choice TRAP law and urge them do everything they can to shut it down.
Register to vote, folks. Attend your caucuses if you can. And vote next November. Bills like this one are the price you will pay if you don’t.
By Robert Cook
Activism Chair