Gabrielle Russon
In the wake of a new lawsuit, a national physician advocacy group is condemning the state for threatening Florida TV stations for playing a pro-abortion ad.
The Committee to Protect Health Care, which supports abortion rights, sent out a press release after the Yes on 4 campaign filed a lawsuit against state officials.
Floridians Protecting Freedom, the political committee backing Amendment 4, sued after a Department of Health lawyer sent cease and desist letters to Florida TV stations earlier this month.
The commercial caught up in the legal fight is about a woman named Caroline who got an abortion after she found out she was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer while 20 weeks pregnant.
“If Caroline had been diagnosed with that same tumor this year while pregnant, she wouldn’t have been able to get abortion care in our state, and for the Florida Department of Health to argue otherwise is disingenuous and dangerous,” said Dr. Neha Sharma, a Miami radiation oncologist, in a prepared statement.
“These sorts of circumstances are sadly not uncommon — I had a patient diagnosed with a malignancy while pregnant. She had to make the difficult decision to continue the pregnancy regardless of the risk to her life or get an abortion and obtain treatment. These decisions are hard enough without government interference.”
Amendment 4 seeks to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution. To pass, the ballot initiative needs at least 60% of the vote in the Nov. 5 election.
“It’s alarming and shameful that the Department of Health is more focused on trying to discredit a woman with terminal cancer than on protecting women from the state’s dangerous abortion ban,” said Dr. Alexandra Levy, a Hollywood OBGYN.
“Florida’s extreme ban does not allow exceptions for cases like Caroline’s — doctors and lawyers agree. The only way to stop this extreme ban is to vote YES ON 4. We need to make it clear: politicians are never more qualified to make health care decisions than women and their doctors.”
