Today marks an unprecedented victory for the women of Florida.
As a Florida OB/GYN, tomorrow I can walk into my office and prepare to provide the same care to patients that I always have, knowing Florida’s current law remains on the books and isn’t at risk of being deemed “unconstitutional.”
That’s because over seven hundred of my colleagues, practicing from Jacksonville down to Miami, spanning over fifty specialties in over one hundred cities and virtually every county in Florida, used their voices to protect women from the vague and deceptive provisions of Amendment 4.
After years of devastating losses for women’s healthcare in other states, we Florida physicians were ready. We organized the nation’s largest pro-life physician coalition to date against Amendment 4.
And for some of us, that meant putting our livelihood on the line.
The truth is, despite the fact that the vast majority of OB/GYNs do not perform induced abortions, groups with influence at the upper echelons of the medical community have become politicized, working to silence the voices of practitioners who choose to offer life-affirming medicine. But here in Florida, these special interest groups did not prevail.
Political pundits will say that our victory is narrow, but that’s hardly a surprise with so many attempts to conflate dangerous abortions with women’s healthcare circling the airwaves.
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And from where I’m standing, no electoral victory that results in better care for women can be considered a partial win. The consequences of Amendment 4 being cemented into Florida’s constitution, which we have successfully avoided thanks to a well-informed electorate, would have been catastrophic.
In the weeks leading up to Election Day, pro-abortion advocates, NOT physicians, lied about the specifics of Amendment 4 when it comes to maintaining health and safety standards for women undergoing abortion.
They lied about who would be allowed to do those abortions, and they lied about whether or not parents would have any right to be involved with their daughter’s decision to have an abortion and ensure that she was safe.
Not only this, but these advocates also exploited the stories of Amber Thurman, Josseli Barnica, and a mother in Broward right here in Florida, just to name a few.
The truth is, my heart breaks for these women, who deserved better care and advice, and could have been provided it by a physician like me in accordance with the laws in their state. There is not a single state across our country with laws that would have prohibited the care that each of these women needed – anyone who tells you otherwise is lying.
Amendment 4 would have made Florida one of the most dangerous places for women and girls who are pregnant.
Already in Florida, women don’t have to wait to see a physician if they are experiencing complications from an ectopic pregnancy, severe sepsis, or any other condition that could put them or their child at risk. That standard remains true in the defeat of Amendment 4.
Thanks to my fellow Physicians Against Amendment 4, and Floridians who care about protecting both my maternal and fetal patients, the Sunshine State can continue to pride itself as one of the best places in our nation for women and families to thrive.
If physicians in other states have the courage to follow our lead, this could be the start of a revolutionizing era in women’s healthcare, when physicians can confidently provide excellent care for their patients, and women can be assured that we are here to meet all their needs, without these radical constitutional amendments.
LifeNews Note: Dr. Ana Verdeja is an OB/GYN who practices in Plant City. This column was originally published by FloridaVoiceNews.com
