Women's rights are on the line, and we need your help. Right. Now.
I believe you and I have something in common: Last year, we both worked to elect progressive women candidates dedicated to making change. And now, their work in
When the House passed the health care reform bill, the legislation included the Stupak/Pitts Amendment, which would deny millions of women access to safe, affordable reproductive health care. It would prohibit millions of women from getting coverage for abortion in their health insurance, even if they pay for it themselves!
This amendment goes further than any previous federal law to restrict access to abortion -- and flies in the face of an important principle of health care reform: that no one would lose benefits they already have.
EMILY's List helped elect pro-choice Democratic women who are working to ensure this amendment does not pass. But our women in Congress need our support to make that happen.
Every single one of us needs to speak out in opposition to this amendment -- and, with deals being cut left and right in the Senate right now, we must act immediately.
The health care bill would make significant progress for women -- ending gender inequalities in health care costs, halting discriminatory practices such as treating domestic violence as a "pre-existing condition," and making coverage more affordable for American families. That's why it's so crucial this bill not include a provision that would set women back.
Every EMILY's List woman in the House voted against the Stupak/Pitts Amendment. And we know our candidates in the Senate will also fight tooth and nail to prevent this new restriction on women's rights. They are the firewall against any new restrictions on a woman's right to choose, but they need our voices to join with theirs if we are going to win this battle.
Sign the petition today and send a message loud and clear to Congress: this amendment must be removed before this legislation is enacted into law.
Sign the petition at STOPSTUPAK.com right now to take action against this dangerous restriction on women's reproductive rights.
There's no point in passing a health care reform bill that makes women less healthy, less safe and less able to exercise their constitutional rights -- and that's why we must join together today to prevent that from happening.
Warmest regards,
Ellen R. Malcolm
President