Forty years after the vote of the Veil law, the Minister of Health will launch in January a vast national plan to improve access to voluntary termination of pregnancy (abortion).
“Voluntary Termination of Pregnancy is a fundamental right”. Since the start of her mandate, the Minister of Health has made this principle her hobbyhorse. On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the debates in the National Assembly on the Veil law, Marisol Touraine therefore announced the launch in mid-January of a “coherent plan to improve access to abortion across the board. of the territory “.
When doctors refuse to abort
In the pages of Elle magazine, the minister blasted doctors who refuse to perform abortion beyond the tenth week. In fact, in France, article L.2212-8 of the public health code stipulates that “a doctor is never required to perform an abortion. But he must immediately inform the person concerned of his refusal and immediately inform him of the names of the practitioners likely to carry out the intervention ”.
Marisol Touraine also charged the practitioners who try to “impose one or the other of the methods, medicamentous or surgical”. “It is inadmissible to take liberties with this right”, she insisted.
48% of private abortion centers have closed
Asked about the territorial inequalities in access to abortion, the minister reiterated her desire that “a woman be taken care of, everywhere, under the same conditions”. In fact, this summer, she had addressed the Regional Health Agencies (ARS) to ask them to remain mobilized and to ensure a permanent abortion in order to “remove the territorial obstacles” and reduce delays.
Nearly 220,000 voluntary terminations of pregnancy were carried out in France in 2012, a figure that has been relatively stable for ten years. But in a decade, abortion centers are becoming increasingly rare depending on the region. Thus, between 2004 and 2012, some 130 centers have closed their doors according to the Dress (Department of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics), ie 5% of public establishments and 48% of private establishments.
Abortion, a fragile right?
As soon as he arrived at the Ministry of Health, Marisol Touraine has reopened the case of abortion to introduce 100% coverage of the IVG package by the Health Insurance. To combat disinformation aimed at making women feel guilty about having an abortion, she has also created a government website with objective information (www.sante.gouv.fr/ivg).
In fact, if doctors do not consider this right threatened, they often denounce the obstacles that hinder access to abortion for many women. For Marisol Touraine, it is therefore a question of strengthening this right, while tackling those who oppose it. “We have seen, with what almost happened in Spain, that setbacks are always possible (…) In France, the overwhelming majority is attached to this right. But we must be vigilant because the word of the ultras is free, ”she underlined.
And the facts seem to prove him right … On Twitter, pro-life activists show themselves upset by the minister’s approach, and promise to lead the fight.
or better, offer a surgical curette with pregnancy tests, women will be able to have an abortion herself. #LT #Touraine #IVG
– Victor Pereira (@vicocorechico) November 21, 2014
According to @MarisolTouraine, we must “celebrate the right to#IVG“. Curious to celebrate the loss of human lives … http://t.co/nUApfUE71H
– Elvernao? (@ Elnr18) November 21, 2014
.@MarisolTouraine we won’t let you do that, just know that. http://t.co/TdpzBAgurF
– Marcel Greuillet? (@MarcelGreuillet) November 21, 2014
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