Today’s Roe v. Wade

More than 36 years ago, the Supreme Court passed the revolutionary Roe v. Wade decision. The decision made abortion legal. Today, the debate involves abortion and health care—specifically, whether abortion should be covered in a public health care plan. This debate could set back the health care bill even further while the issue is debated.
Recently, an amendment to the Affordable Health Care for America Act called the Stupak Amendment was passed. The amendment said that no federal money could be used to fund abortions. When public health care is available, many private insurers will drop their abortion coverage to comply with federal standards. The Stupak Amendment may force lower class women to seek illegal abortions and put their health at risk.
Before Roe v. Wade, abortions were not readily available, particularly to the people who needed them the most. Our generation has never lived in a time that abortions were illegal and in many ways, we don’t understand the importance of abortion in health care. Before abortions were legal, many women sought risky and dangerous procedures to get rid of unwanted pregnancies. These days, legal abortions lessen the risk of a botched procedure.
By pulling abortion from the public health care option, we are taking a step backward. We are putting women at risk once again. I agree that we should focus on preventing unwanted pregnancy in the first place but we should also do all we can to insure that women are receiving the proper health care they need and deserve.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/29/weekinreview/29stolberg.html?ref=us