FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Erik Dorey | press [at] dpo [dot] org | (503) 239-8624
Meredith Wood Smith, Chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon, released the following statement decrying Mitt Romney's war on women, evidenced by his support for the "Blunt Amendment" – a measure voted on today in the U.S. Senate that would allow an employer to deny female employees health coverage because of that employer's beliefs.
“Mitt Romney may have set the world record for fastest flip flop yesterday, going from opposing the extreme and dangerous Blunt Amendment to supporting it in under two hours. Unfortunately for Romney–and women across the country–the position he finally settled on attempts to take away a woman’s ability to make her own decisions about her own health.
“Mitt Romney keeps ending up on the wrong side of every issue important to Oregonians. He’s taking one extreme position after another. With his support of the Blunt Amendment, Romney would take decisions critical to women’s health away from women and give them to their bosses.This extreme legislation is opposed by many health care groups, from the American Cancer Society to the American Academy of Pediatrics to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. They aren’t the only ones who disagree with Mitt Romney; women in Oregon do too.
“Make no mistake: this was a direct attack on women's health. This wouldn’t just apply to contraceptive coverage, but any aspect of health care an employer chose, from mammograms to cervical cancers screenings to maternity care—everything is on the table. With another one of his trademark quick flip-flops, Mitt Romney has doubled down on the Republican Party’s latest effort to turn back the clock on progress for millions of American women. Romney has shown time and again that he is willing to say anything to get elected, even if that means putting himself between a woman, her family, and her doctor.”
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