Of What Difference? - National Abortion Federation

we gather here today to reflect on thisdecision’s impact on the Canadian healthsystem, the political landscape, and thewomen of Canada, we are reminded that insome provinces and territories women arestill denied equal access to abortion care.Even though abortion is considered a safe,legal, and insured service, access is variableacross the country.Currently, there are no abortion servicesavailable in Prince Edward Island, andaccess remains a challenge for rural womenthroughout Canada. In New Brunswick, awoman can only obtain a publicly fundedabortion if provided by an obstetrician/gynecologist (OB/GYN) in a hospital withwritten approval from two doctors. Thispolicy contradicts the decision we are hereto commemorate and unfairly restrictsaccess for women in the province.Women not living in their home provinceor territory also face challenges becauseabortion is not part of the inter-provincialbilling agreement. In fact, abortion is theonly time-sensitive and medically necessaryprocedure excluded from the list of serviceson the inter-provincial billing agreement.This policy forces students attending schoolin another province, or women who haverecently moved and are in the process oftransitioning their health care benefits,to pay the full cost of their abortion careout-of-pocket, or incur additional expensestraveling back to their home province inorder to obtain a publicly funded abortion.Anti-choice physicians can also presentbarriers to access. Although manyabortion providers accept self-referrals,some facilities require women to obtain aphysician referral before they can accessabortion care. Many women often go totheir family physician for this referralor simply to get information abouttheir options. The Canadian MedicalAssociation’s policy of allowing physiciansto refuse to refer patients for abortion careis a clear violation of CMA’s own Code ofEthics, which requires physicians to:• Consider the well-being of the patient;• Practice medicine in a manner thattreats the patient with dignity; and• Provide patients with the informationthey need to make informed decisionsabout their medical care.The CMA’s policy treats women unfairlyand impedes women’s access to care.Now more than ever, it is important thatwe don’t lose sight of the women whocontinue to face these obstacles in order toobtain the abortion care they need. Nowmore than ever, we must remain dedicatedto advocating for these women. We mustcontinue to work together to ensure thatwomen have the same access to abortioncare whether they live in an urban center ora small town, or whether they live in BritishColumbia or Prince Edward Island.Some of you here today are students whohave never lived in a world without legalabortion. You, most of all, must remainvigilant in preserving this freedom so thatwe never have to return to the days of backalley abortions where our sisters, mothers,and friends had to risk their health—andsometimes even their lives—to end anunwanted pregnancy.The National Abortion Federation andthe National Abortion Federation Canadaare pleased to co-sponsor this symposiumwith The University of Toronto’s Facultyof Law, and with generous support fromthe Canada Research Chair in Health Lawand Policy. We’ve put together an insightfulday-long program and have assembledleading experts to examine themes drawnfrom the Morgentaler decision. Thankyou for joining us as we commemoratethis historic decision and its impact onCanadian women. It is certainly a pleasureto welcome all of you to this symposium.4