Indiana Republicans Advance Transvaginal Ultrasound Bill

[onehandle]

Source: TPM



Indiana Republicans are advancing legislation that would require women to undergo a transvaginal ultrasound prior to an abortion, the latest in a string of efforts by state GOP lawmakers to actively discourage women from terminating their pregnancies.

The provision is tucked inside Senate Bill 371, introduced by State Sen. Travis Holdman (R), which has passed a committee. Although the legislation doesn’t specifically say transvaginal ultrasound, its criteria would effectively require it, according to the abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America.

John Stutsman, an obstetrician-gynecologist and professor of medicine at Indiana University, confirmed to the Indianapolis Star that a transvaginal probe would be required.

Holdman told the Indy Star that such measures are justified to protect “another human life.” Indiana’s House, Senate and governor’s mansion are all controlled by Republicans.


Read more: http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/02/indiana-republicans-advance-transvaginal-ultrasound-bill.php?ref=fpb

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. Disgusting SOB's. Shame on them.

[xocet]

2. How about requiring a transnasal ultrasound for each of the Indiana Republicans prior to a vote..n/t

[Tx4obama]

4. How about trans-penile :) n/t

[BumRushDaShow]

10. A big catheter.

[Tx4obama]

3. version advanced out of Senate committee would require women to undergo TWO transvaginal probes

Indiana Bill Would Force Women To Undergo Two Transvaginal Probes To Take A Pill

-snip-

UPDATE

Indiana’s bill is actually twice as invasive as most forced ultrasound bills, the Huffington Post reports. The version that advanced out of a Senate committee today would require women to undergo two transvaginal probes — before and after taking the abortion pill. There’s no medically necessary reason to require an ultrasound after an abortion procedure, since women can simply take a blood test to see whether their hormone levels have returned to normal to verify that they are no longer pregnant.

Full article here: http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/02/21/1620891/indiana-transvaginal/

[LuckyLib]

5. OMG, will this ever end?

[iandhr]

8. +1

[DissidentVoice]

34. +2

[TwilightGardener]

6. State-mandated humiliation.

[iandhr]

7. Wow

When will the war on women end.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

9. Unnecessary government regulation by people who hate government regulation, hypocrites. nt

[socialindependocrat]

11. Penetration w/o consent is RAPE

These people are sicko morons who are into power and control

The same motivation for rapists everywhere!

This is an abuse of power

Without a doubt - VOTE THEM OUT!

[Le Taz Hot]

12. Yeah, and how about a colonoscopy

without anesthetic each time they need to take a BM. Son of a . . . I HATE these people! Screw them and their state-sponsored rape.

[Hard Assets]

13. I have a proposal.

Let the men get the transvaginal exam instead of women.

Now they can shut up for good.

[nobodyspecial]

14. Providing access to health care to those who want it is government overreach

but forcing unnecessary and unwanted vaginal probes on women is just wonderful. When the hell are people going to wake up?!? This is an outrage.

[kiranon]

15. These legislators are sick. What if the transvaginal probe causes

harm to the fetus or pregnant woman? Who is responsible then for the death, injury to the pregnant woman or the fetus? Will the operator of the probe go to jail? Will the legislators who voted for this be tried for a crime? Be civilly liable for the harm that is caused? This seems to me to be rape by another name.

[cstanleytech]

16. They dont care if it causes harm, all they care about is that this discourages abortions.

Frankly, it disgusts me to no end for them to keep trying this sick fucking shit.

[blkmusclmachine]

17. GOP-sanctioned RAPE.

Call it what it is.

[Myrina]

18. ... and I'm not hearing any outrage - or even any reporting - from the local media on this ....

Indiana: Welcome to the 12th Century.

[DissidentVoice]

35. An old saying about Indiana

When I still lived in Indiana, we had a saying:

Q: When it's noon in New York City, what time is it in Indiana?
A: 1925.

[Myrina]

39. Yep, that's about it.

I really need to relocate away from this place.

[glinda]

19. That thing is horrifying. These people are really sick.

[DissidentVoice]

20. I've said it before...

...and I'll say it again.

I am a native-born Hoosier, lived there for 41 years of my life until I moved to Michigan (and haven't looked back).

Nothing that the far right in Indiana proposes shocks me.

I'm male, so I can't say I know how this would affect a woman...but it seems to me to be dancing very close to sexual assault.

I know that if any of my sisters were "asked" to undergo this they would say "LIKE HELL!" Depending on how pissed off they were, it might be accompanied by a backhand.

If it were my wife, she'd say "I don't think so!" and I would ask said "doctor" if they would like me to practice Proctology 101 with their "probe."

[Skittles]

21. what IS it about Indiana?

WHY is it so fucking red???

[onehandle]

23. Cultural wasteland, rural, low education, little to do.

These are the defining characteristics of the reddest states.

The 'culture' of Libertarianism and guns breed well there.

Culturally diverse, urban, more educated, hustle and bustle areas tend to be blue.

[indypaul]

25. There is no cure for stupid. n/t

[DissidentVoice]

33. And a lot of apathy n/t

[AngryOldDem]

38. Largely rural state. n/t

[AngryOldDem]

28. I'll tell you how it affects a woman.

It is traumatizing as hell. What you see in that picture with the OP is what the wand looks like. They put a glob of K-Y jelly on it for easier insertion, and then they give it to you to put it in. Once you position it where they want it, they take over and more or less use it as a diving rod. It is uncomfortable, and for some women, it can be painful, especially if it bumps up against an organ.

I had two of these unspeakable procedures done while pregnant...and to be honest those were the worst medical "tests" I have ever had. The first, looking back, was totally unnecessary (I was miscarrying, and by that point nothing could have been done); at the second (to check on another pregnancy) I damned near passed out because of the stress and the bad memories associated with the first one. To this day, nearly 15 years later, I have such a visceral reaction to these stories that I almost lose it.

This is legalized rape. Legalized SELF-rape, that is, since you have a part in it. And it serves NO diagnostic purpose. What you see when you are at the stage where only a transvag will work is nothing like what you see 12 or 13 weeks into a pregnancy. I fail to see how this will make any woman who wants to exercise her legal right change her mind. But then, I don't think that's the true motive to doing this. This is purely punitive, and abusive, and making the woman "pay" for her choice.

Rachel Maddow had a segment on this the other night, and she actually quoted a woman legislator (I think) who had the absolute GALL to say that since the woman didn't have an issue with something put into her vagina in the first place, she shouldn't have a problem with a transvag. How in the FUCK can you argue with someone like that, who can't tell the difference between consent and being forced to undergo a medical procedure against one's will? Rachel was kind of laughing in disbelief, but dammit, this is no laughing matter.

The kicker to this Indiana law is, that once the woman has the abortion, she has to COME BACK and have ANOTHER transvag to confirm that the pregnancy is indeed terminated. WTF??? I've not been able to find this bill, but I'm curious to know just what the penalty is if she chooses NOT to have the second one. Also, will the state pay for this, or will the woman have to take her chances with insurance, if she has insurance?

I guess I should be thankful that I should be glad my childbearing years are over, given that I was prone to miscarriage and high-risk pregnancies, because where this is going, it's only going to be a matter of time before even miscarriages are considered potential crimes and women will be under criminal suspicion for those.

Sorry for the long post, but this really, really upsets me.

ON EDIT: I further can't imagine the emotional trauma that a woman who has been raped will feel, knowing that she will be raped AGAIN -- and AGAIN -- by her state government. There are no just no words.

[DissidentVoice]

30. Good cripesallbloodymighty!

I knew it was bad, but reading a female perspective on it illustrates how bad it REALLY is.

This should be OUTLAWED, not endorsed!

[AngryOldDem]

37. Yes, it should be, especially as a precondition to an abortion.

There are some medically mandated uses for transvaginals, such as diagnosing ovarian problems, etc. But in the case of exercising a woman's right to an abortion, there is NO reason for one, let alone two, of those heinous procedures.

The ultrasounds I had were optional -- I went through with them for the sake of my pregnancies. But I can't imagine being forced by law into having these. Name any other invasive medical procedure that the state mandates you have.

Lawmakers are finding so many creative ways to make end runs around Roe that it's sickening. Women are becoming nothing more than chattel again.

As I said, I'm just waiting for legislation that assumes suspicion of wrongdoing when a woman has a miscarriage. It's been hinted at in some states, so it it coming.

[DissidentVoice]

41. There's a difference in "medically necessary" and "fitting a political agenda"

Based on what you said, the procedure has its uses to make sure mother and child are healthy. It does not have a valid use to support a political agenda. I can just hear one of my sisters saying "You think you're gonna stick that thing up me? Think again!"

I remember when I enlisted in the Air Force, I had to have tons of injections (I didn't know what they were and when someone would ask, a sergeant would bellow "DON'T ASK!&quot , and female recruits were given pregnancy tests...but I don't think it was anything like this.

And that was the MILITARY, where you have little-to-no-choice in the matter!

I am sure that the assumption-of-guilt when a woman has a miscarriage is already de facto in some states, if not already de jure. "OK, you went and had a back-alley coathanger abortion. You're under arrest for murder."

What if a woman is having a life-threatening ectopic pregnancy? Let her die? Damn sure that's "pro-life!"

What if a woman has been raped and/or impregnated? Force her to live with the results of that terror? What if it's the result of incest? That's true compassion, yep.

It sounds like a movie I saw years ago called "The Handmaid's Tale."

[Comatose Sphagetti]

29. Look at the 2012 electoral map...

http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/2012/results

My home state of Indiana looks like a red middle finger sitting atop the deep south. Sigh.

[DissidentVoice]

31. Indiana is really part of the Deep South culturally

Once you get outside the major urban areas. I still remember seeing Confederate flags almost everywhere out in the rural areas, with the exception of the North's Amish Country (kind of my backyard; I came from Elkhart-Goshen-South Bend).

[xxqqqzme]

22. I had no idea there

were so many MDs in state legislatures. This prescribing of required medical procedures surely must be policy set forth by qualified professionals.



Why aren't doctors protesting this infringement of the ability to practice medicine. I find it odd that as a group they have been silent.

[DissidentVoice]

40. Former Governor Otis Bowen

Indiana's former Governor, Otis "Doc" Bowen, was an MD, and, of course, a Republican. He was from Bremen, just south of where I came from.

[blackspade]

24. These punitive attacks on women's rights

are disgusting.

[Ken Burch]

26. Will they require that each transvaginal ultrasound be witnessed

by a quorum of the Indiana Legislature?

[NightOwwl]

27. Charge Holdman with Accessory to Rape

If women are forced to undergo this procedure (GOP sanctioned RAPE), they should charge the men who sponsored this bill with accessory to rape. There's got to be a lawyer who would be willing to take this on, all the way to the Supreme Court.

I sent an email to Holdman basically telling him the same thing:

Doctors say based on the criteria in Bill SB 371, a transvaginal probe would be required for women wishing to uphold their constitutional right to an abortion. What you are proposing is nothing more than GOP sanctioned rape.

I do not live in Indiana, but I will do my best to convince women who are forced against their will to have a probe inserted into their vagina to charge YOU with ACCESSORY to RAPE. I'm sure there are lawyers who would love to take this to the Supreme Court.

The Bible does not say abortion is a sin.

The Catholic Church did not consider abortion a sin until the rise of the patriarchal system within the church.

Your actions have nothing do to with saving a 'life' and everything to do with the fact that besides your God, only woman have the power to bring life into this world. Men like you fear this, which is one of the reasons women have been subjugated by the church and society in general.

[DissidentVoice]

32. These "legislators" should have one shoved up their collective arse n/t

[vanboggie]

36. Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana ....

This particular ALEC template is quickly spreading through the Midwest. It's a systematic state-by-state coup designed to allow the Repug fascists to take over the Rust Belt. What better way than policies, gerrymandering and continual election fraud to take over the national stage.