According to Right to Life UK, the UK government has announced the biggest change to abortion provision since 1967, introducing ‘DIY’ abortions to be committed at home without a doctor or other medical professional present.
The change is said to be temporary and will expire “on the day on which the temporary provisions of the Coronavirus Act 2020 expire, or the end of the period of 2 years beginning with the day on which it is made, whichever is earlier.” The decision was made without any vote or debate and despite the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care saying earlier in the week that “there are no proposals to change abortion rules” and the Department of Health making it clear there were safety issues for women and young girls with DIY abortions.
Health Minister, Lord Bethell responded to the decision saying:
….[W]e do not agree that women should be able to take both treatments for medical abortion at home. We believe that it is an essential safeguard that a woman attends a clinic, to ensure that she has an opportunity to be seen alone and to ensure that there are no issues.
Do we really want to support an amendment that could remove the only opportunity many women have, often at a most vulnerable stage, to speak confidentially and one-to-one with a doctor about their concerns on abortion and about what the alternatives might be? The bottom line is that, if there is an abusive relationship and no legal requirement for a doctor’s involvement, it is far more likely that a vulnerable woman could be pressured into have an abortion by an abusive partner.
Spokesperson for Right to Life UK, Catherine Robinson agreed, noting that with DIY abortions women and young girls living in dangerous situations will be deprived of the opportunity to speak privately with a doctor before taking the abortion pill possibly against their will. Abusers can use telemed abortions, she said, to cover up their sex crimes.
“Today’s policy change by the Government goes against the very argument previously made by the abortion industry who argued that abortions should be provided at approved locations to protect women from abuse and coercion,” she said. “By encouraging women to have abortions at home or other locations, the UK Government have put the health and safety of women at risk.”
Abortions in the UK were only allowed in hospitals or abortion facilities approved by the Secretary of State. With this new rule, one abortionist can prescribe the abortion pill over the phone or video without first examining the woman to determine if the abortion pill would be safe for her. Without an ultrasound, the doctor could miss an ectopic pregnancy and the abortion pill could lead to hemorrhaging and death for the woman. An ultrasound is also needed to properly date the pregnancy because if the abortion pill is taken after 10 weeks there is a chance it will fail. In addition, if the woman experiences any complications she will have to be taken to the emergency room during a global pandemic.
Robinson called for the government to “immediately revoke this dangerous decision to allow DIY abortions.”
“This is incredibly opportunistic and tragic change pushed by the abortion lobby to take advantage of this crisis,” she added. “This is the most significant policy change to the practice of Abortion since 1967 and it has happened entirely by the back-door – without any Parliamentary scrutiny or public consultation. […] This places women at risk. The removal of any direct medical supervision overseeing the use of both abortion pills could see a rise of complications experienced by women, thus putting more strain on our NHS – having the opposite of the effect intended.”
Editor’s Note: If you have taken the first dose of the abortion pill and regret it, help is available. Call Abortion Pill Reversal at 1-877-558-0333 or visit abortionpillreversal.com.
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