Anti-Abortion Legislation Is 'Shameful': Heights Representative

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — State Rep. Janine Boyd is accusing Ohio GOP members of again infringing on women's rights with Senate Bill 260.

The legislation would bar doctors from providing abortion-inducing drugs to patients, if the doctor is not physically present. The bill effectively prohibits abortion-related telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the bill, doctors who violate the law could face a fourth-degree felony on the first offense and a third-degree felony for subsequent violations.

Boyd and fellow Democrats argue the legislation is a threat to the health and safety of women.

"That my colleagues, many of whom have contributed to a culture of anti-science and anti-medicine throughout the pandemic, remain preoccupied with a woman’s pregnancy and what she and her personal physician discuss is shameful. The fact that the bill’s sponsor is the same member of the Ohio Senate, a trained medical physician, who publicly asserted in the form of a question that COVID-19 disproportionately affects Black people because Black people don’t thoroughly wash their hands is shameful, tacky and absurd,” Boyd said.

Senate Bill 260 was introduce by state Rep. Stephen Huffman. In June, Huffman asked if Black Ohioans were contracting COVID-19 at higher rates than white Ohioans because they "don't wash their hands as well as other groups?"

However, Huffman defended his bill in a statement to cleveland.com, saying abortion-inducing pills were too dangerous to be prescribed lightly. He said the side effects of the medication were serious and doctors should ensure patients don't face unnecessary risks.