June 1979 from Albany-Health C·Ommi Ttee Passes No Anti-Abortion
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-, ·- In New York State: NYS- NARAL P.O. Box 52. New York, N.Y. 10028 NARAL 212-871-0269 National Abortion In Washington: NARAL Rights (825 15 StrHt NW, Washington, DC 20005 Action league 202-347-7774) To preserve for every American woman, poor or rich, the option of safe, legal abortion. June 1979 From Albany-Health c·ommi ttee passes no anti-abortion bills to Assembly floor for a vote•Anti-abortion leader withdraws "parental rights" bill to await outcome of Supreme Court case, saying "we will re.turn"(p.2) From Washington-Rep. Hyde returns to most harsh anti-abortion language. First 1979 abortion-related votes in June. NAHAL and other free choice groups target June 18 for mail, visits and Capitol steps Pro-choice Rally ( see P•4 ) ••• In New York City-Religious Leaders for Free Choice to publicly affirm commitment to the Constitution and its protection of religious freedom and huma.n liberty with church service followed by procession to steps of Federal Hall on June 29 (p.4). To be honored: distinguished Congressional defenders of the Constitution who have been targeted for defeat by anti-choice forces ( see p. 3 ) ••• Many places-anti-abortion "hit list" in possible effort to dominate press attention and distract it from their lack of success in State legislatures, and pro-choice successes in two 1979 polls (p.3) ••• ANTI-CHOICE CONGRESS MEMBERS AGAIN USE APPROPRIATIONS PROCESS TO TRY TO IMPOSE THEIR VIEWS ON THOSE WHO RECEIVE FEDERALLY AIDED HEALTH CARE ••• '19 Hyde plan: This year's Appropriations bill for the Departments of Labor/HEW FY 1980 (for the Fi1~cal Year 1980) which funds health care for the poor under the Medicaid program will come to the House of Will Congress Representatives around June 21. Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.) has practice harsh again introduced his infamous Hyde Amendment meant to deny funds uninformed under this act if and when the patient chooses abortion. The medicine one exception: to save the life of the woman. Or in other words, agAin? not in the two other cases gained in previous years' battles over 1ne Hyde Amendment: in cases of severe and long-lasting health dam~ge and for victims of rape or incest. (Total bill, 873 billion, last year abortion cost,S424,000 ) All-out To deal with all their votes ahead, the MESSAGE to Congress must be: CAmpa.ign to "Government should fund both childbirth and abortion as availabl• flood medical procedures under its health plans for Medicaid, the Peace Congress with Corps., the military; and leave the decision to the individual. pro-choice I/we support use of public funds for patients who choose abortion mail for whatever reason, otherwise its legality is meaningless. Funds to arrive should be extended to include the three cases agreed upon last June 18 year plus the othe'r real reasons why people choose abortion: genetic defects, mental and other health reasons • .1\.11 should add: "I'M PRO-CHOICE, AND I VOTE" (see p.2). ntn I - -·-·-- ... -- --··- --- "I'm pro-choice The NARAL Annual Meeting in Washington April28-9 focused on the and I vote" importance of the 1980 elections as the watershed event for both our theme. anti-abortionists and pro-choice advocates. There wa.s discussion of (For postcards the need for more participation in the political process by indiv at no cost iduals who are pro-choice and of the political activities available send stamped to individuals. Only 23% of Americans work or contribute in political envelope. ) campaigns and thus potentially influence candidates' thinking. We visit About 35 New York Staters stayed over on Monday to visit the NYS Congress to delegation to Congress and lobby for abortion rights. Of special protest interest was our meeting with Senator Moynihan who 01pparently feels discrimination great pressure on this issue, is personally troubled by it, feels in health not enough gratitude from our side, says he will continue to vote care plans pro-choice. From the meeting with us he went to the Senate and voted against the anti-sex-education amendment Senator Helms was using to try to defeat legislation to separa.te out the Department of Education from HEW. Helms did not use an anti-abortion amendment as expected. State Senate About a month after passage of the state's budget with state funds for tries again abortion included, the NYS Senate voted to cut off state funds for to deny state abortions except in the three cases when the abortion is eligible for funds for reimbursement by federal funds. That effort failed when the Assembly abortions for Health Committee rejected that bill on May 24, 1979· Medicaid eligible. ~he Assembly Health Committee in three tension-filled meetings during Assembly May also dealt with,and rejected, the following: Health Comm. R 6492 Mr. Howard's (Rep.-Con.-Suffolk) bill to add a Constitutional rejects range Amendment to the state Constitution outlawing abortion, of bills A 6107 Mr. Murphy's (Dem-con- Niagara) Omnibus anti-abortion bill meant to with requirements for phony informed consent and 24 hour waitin~ dissuade --peri-&d, pa~tal ~onee-n-t with 24 ho-u.r .wai..t.., spousaL. cnnsent _wi"UL patient and Dr. 5 day wait. This bill, like the Akron Ordinance it is based on, has been enjoined in four other places including Niagara County. Thanks to A 3434 Mrs. Connelly' s(Dem.) "Hospital Conscience" bill, to give Chair Tallon permission to hospitals to refUse to allow abortions. and Speaker Health Committee Chair James R. Tallon, Jr., ga•e each bill a fair Fink and to hearing and committe-e rejected all. those who Our opposition withdrew its bill to require parental consent or acted on our notification to await the outcome in a related case in the Supreme emergency Court literally saying "we '11 be back''• Many in the room were think alerts. ing "so will we". Next year an election year is expected to be the roughest yet. To prepare, thank Speaker Stanley Fink, Albany 12248 for this year's protection of the powerless abortion patient. Abortions cut At the same time the New York Times reported that the NYC Roman off in NYC Catholic Archdiocese which administers health care at the public hospital run Metropolitan Hospital, because of its affiliation with the New York by archdiocese Medical College,has threatened to cut off abortion service at Met Worry exists ropolitan as they did administratively at Lincoln Hospital in the for another Bronx. The City Health and Hospital Corporation says abortions will continue there and plans to monitor the situation. Pro-choice activists believing that a hopeless assignment are sending thanks to Mayor Edward Koch (Gracie Mansion, NYC 10028) for his commitment and messages that it is time to separate the church from the city's health care system to protect public hospital abortions. --l 96th CONGRESS: ABORTION-RELATED VOTES OF NYS REPRESENTATIVES i {over for explanation of votes) REPRESENTATIVES ~ ·r, .:!! ~ Recorded Votes ·t E ~ ll ~ ~ l V) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 1 William Carney RC 1 52 I I I I IIIII I I I I I 2 Thomas Downey D (ucc) 2 53.5 + + + + + A + + + + + 3 Jerome Ambro, Jr. D (RC) 2 j j j ----A - - - 4 Norman Lent RC (M) 4 s A -- - -- --- - 5 John Wyd1er RC (E) 8 55·9 + -- - -- --- A - -- A 6 Lester Wolff DL (J) 7 - + + + + + + + + A + + + + 7 Joseph Addabbo DRL (RC) 9 - + A + + + - + + + + + + + 8 Benjamin Rosenthal DL (J) 8 + + A + + + + + + + + + + + 9 Geraldine Ferraro D 1 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 10 Mario Biaggi DRL (RC) 5 s + -- - -- --- - - - A ll James Scheuer DL (J) 2 I I I + + + + + + + + + + + 12 Shirley Chisholm DL (M) 4 + + + + + + + + + + A + + + 13 Stephen Solarz DL (J) 2 I + + + + + + + + + + + 14 Frederick Richmond DL (J) 2 ~j + + + + + + A + + + + 15 Leo Zeferetti DC (RC) 2 j I I --- - - - 16 Elizabeth Holtzman DL (J) 3 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 17 John Murphy D (RC) 8 64182 s - A A --- --- - + - + 18 s. William Green R (J) 1 I I I I I I + + + + + + + + 19 Charles Rangel DRL (RC) 4 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 20 Theodore Weiss DL (J) 1 + + + + + + + + 21 Robert Garcia DRL ( RC) 1 ~ j~ jii + + + A + + A + 22 Jonathan Bingham DL (ucc) 7 80190 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 23 Peter Peyser D 1 - -A I I I I I I I I I I 24 Richard Ottinger D (J) 2 75 I II + + + + + + + + + + 25 Hamilton Fish, Jr. RC (E) 5 71 - - + --- --- - + + 26 Benjamin Gilman R (J) 3 55 - - + + + + + + + + + + + + 27 :Matthew McHugh DL ~RC) 2 68 I I I - - + --- - + + + + 28 Samuel Stratton D P) 10 56 - - + --- --- -- - A A 29 Gerald Solomon RC 1 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 30 Robert McEwen RC ( P) 3 s - -- - -- --- - - - 31 Donald Mitchell RC (M) 3 s - -- - -- --- - + - 32 James Hanley D (RC) 7 80 - -- - -- --- - - + 33 Gary Lee R l 58 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 34 Frank Horton R (P) 8 - + + + + + + + + + + + + + 35 Barber Conable,Jr. R (M) 7 73 - + + + + + - + + - - + + + 36 John LaFalce DL (RC) 2 55 - -- --- A + - - + 37 Henry Nowak DL (RC) 2 j ~ ~ --- -- + 38 Jack Kemp RC (P) 4 62 - -- - -- --- - - - - - 39 Stanley Lundine D 2 I I I+ + + + + + + + + + + SENATORS Jacob Javits R (J) term ends 1980 voted consistently pro-choice Daniel Moynihan DL (RC)term ends 1982 voted consistently pro-choice PRESIDENT Jimmy Carter Pol. Part;y D=Democratic, R= Republican, L=Liberal, CcConservative Reli~on Religion as stated by the Representative. E=Episcopalian, J=Jewish M=Methodist, P=Presbyterian, Prot.=Protestant, RC=Catholic, UCC=Congregational Term Number of terms in office · Polls %favoring legal abortion in most recent poll of Congresional District SCA Sponsor Constitutional Amendment to ban legal abortion, except to save life of woman.