California lawmakers are poised to pass a bill mandating that the state’s colleges and universities keep a supply of the abortion pill, RU-486, on hand for any student who requests one, according to a report from the ACLU.
Student activists have pushed the bill, stressing that the abortion bill, which forces the uterus to mimic a miscarriage, effectively expelling an unborn baby from a mother’s womb, is necessary to “support students” who want to “complete their academics in a supportive environment.”
Although it’s already possible to obtain a medical abortion in places like Berkeley, California, where the bill originated, it’s just not convenient for women who take their studies seriously.
Or something.
“Being in Berkeley, I just expected that it would be very easy, there would be no issues in accessing care,” one activist told the women’s magazine, Bustle. “[students who wanted abortions were] faced with mostly logistical and bureaucratic hurdles that ended up having serious consequences on their academic performance, finances, and also just their emotional wellbeing.”
If it seems strange that students at the University of California Berkeley would be so far from a Planned Parenthood center that it’s expensive and time-consuming to access one, that’s because it is bizarre. According to research from Californians for Life, the average distance from a California college campus to an abortion provider is 6 miles.
The bill also seems to underestimate the risks of taking the abortion pill. Live Action’s Lila Rose penned an op-ed for The Washington Times outlining some of the risks, and noting that while campus health care providers might be equipped to dispense the pills, they aren’t equipped to handle the many risks associated with RU-486.
Even Planned Parenthood, whose website is supposed to give “comprehensive” information on RU-486, lists the after-effects as being like a “heavy, crampy period,” even though miscarriage — even a “forced” miscarriage — is nothing like a “heavy period.” The pain can be excruciating and can last up to a week. The “period” associated with expelling a fetus is heavy, and emotionally difficult to process, and bleeding can last up to two weeks. Spotting, following a medically-induced abortion can last up to a month.
And that’s without consideration for the psychological and emotional effects of abortion. But student activists and abortion rights proponents believe that putting RU-486 in the hands of college students is no more dangerous than tasking a campus health care provider with dispensing over the counter pain medication — and more necessary.
California Senate Bill 320 will hit the floor of the California legislature within the next several weeks.