For Immediate Release:

September 6, 2007

Media Contact: Andrea Gage
414-213-3717 (cell)

Committee Urged to Pass Compassionate Care for Rape Victims Bill as Written and Without Delay
PPAWI to Assembly Judiciary Committee: “Rape victims in Wisconsin are counting on you”

Madison, WI- Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin (PPAWI) was part of a massive turnout today of supporters of the Compassionate Care for Rape Victims Bill, Senate Bill 129/Assembly Bill 377. Rape survivors, advocates, health care professionals and law enforcement all urged the Assembly Judiciary and Ethics committee to quickly pass the bill out of committee without amendments and send it onto the full Assembly for a floor vote.

The Compassionate Care for Rape Victims Bill will ensure that Wisconsin hospital emergency rooms tell rape victims about emergency contraception (EC) and dispense it upon request to prevent pregnancy following assault. EC is a form of birth control that prevents pregnancy if taken within 120 hours of an assault. EC is at least 89 percent effective when taken within 72 hours, making timely access critically important for victims of rape. American Medical Association (AMA) guidelines promote rape victims’ access to EC, but studies show it’s not happening consistently. A 2006 survey of 109 Wisconsin hospital emergency departments shows that only 1/3 of Wisconsin hospitals provide EC on site without exception to rape victims. Forty-two percent do not offer EC at all and another 23 percent offer it but have exceptions to their policy.

“Rape victims deserve for this bill to be passed immediately, as it is currently written. This bill is simply an effort to ensure that rape victims get a consistent quality of care that is recommended by the AMA. It is a way to make sure that what should happen when a rape victim comes through the emergency room doors does happen in every instance, not just when the victim is lucky enough to be at a hospital that routinely provides information about and access to EC,” said PPAWI Public Policy Director Chris Taylor.

Similar bills have passed in ten other states: California, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina and Washington. The Wisconsin Senate passed the Compassionate Care for Rape Victims Bill, Senate Bill 129, by a vote of 27 to 6 in May. 82 percent of Wisconsin voters also support this bill as indicated in a recent poll.

“For this committee to turn its back on rape victims and oppose this bill is tantamount to allowing the most vulnerable category of patient to be subject to substandard medical care,” said Taylor. “Rape victims in Wisconsin are counting on your actions. For the sake of their health and safety, please pass this bill as written, without delay.”

For more information on the Compassionate Care for Rape Victims Bill, visit www.ppawi.org.

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Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin is the advocacy arm of Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin (PPWI). The mission of PPWI is to empower all individuals to manage their sexual and reproductive health through direct services, education, and advocacy.  www.ppawi.org