Health care freedom amendments adopted during ACA years being used to target abortion bans

[LonePirate]

https://boltsmag.org/abortion-access-and-measures-against-obamacare-ohio-wyoming/

A decade ago, when conservatives were attacking President Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act as government encroachment in health care, they worked to amend state constitutions around the country to affirm a broad right for people to control their own medical decisions.

“Each competent adult shall have the right to make his or her own health care decisions,” reads section 38(a) of the Wyoming constitution’s Declaration of Rights, under the header “Right of healthcare access.” The provision was placed on Wyoming’s ballot by state lawmakers and approved by voters in 2012; voters saw ballot language that described the measure as preserving this right “from undue governmental infringement.”

Now these anti-ACA provisions—and their broad affirmations of a right to decide—have turned into an unlikely weapon in progressives’ fight against restrictions on abortion.

Reproductive rights advocates in Wyoming have sued to strike down the state’s abortion ban, saying that this “right to make . . . health care decisions” protects abortion access. A lawsuit in Ohio has made the same case using a similar provision in Ohio’s constitution that was adopted by voters in 2011.

More at the link. Conservative short-sightedness knows no bounds.

[crickets]

1. Sweet unintended consequences. K&R for visibility.

[Hortensis]

2. Thanks. Though, anti-ACA shortsightedness from anyone knew no bounds.

The people who made these protective amendments had to also fight the joint efforts of Republicans and the mislead anti-ACA left to repeal the ACA altogether, at a time when there was literally no possibility of replacing it.

Lots of the latter learned from this, of course, and are now back on board. Good thing, because everyone owes what they have of progressive government to us.

It's always been up to us.