Nov. 04--As states continue to enact abortion restrictions, a national group of health professionals on Tuesday in Chicago called for "access to abortion as a human right."
The American Public Health Association, made up of doctors, researchers, lawyers, policymakers and other health advocates, adopted policy statements that called for making abortion safe and accessible.
The organization also urged hospitals to develop "broad and inclusive" admitting privilege standards that would allow access to abortion and related services "without creating burdensome barriers for those providers that are required to gain hospital privileges."
The call came as many states are tightening abortion access. Last year, 15 states enacted 26 abortion restrictions, including new counseling and waiting period requirements and restrictions on minors' access to abortion, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a New York organization that advocates for wider access to abortion. Since 2010, states have adopted 231 new abortion restrictions, the organization said.
The American Public Health Association also called for universal access to contraception, an end to HIV testing for employment, improved access to worker fatality data, reduced flame retardant exposure, more physical activity for older adults, an end to human trafficking, and other public health issues.
More than 13,000 people are attending the organization's conference, which ends Wednesday at McCormick Place.
jrussell@tribpub.com
