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We had abortions. When we testify, we change the conversation.
We're so excited to virtually stand beside our fellow storyteller @amandabeatrizTX during today's #BeBoldEndHyde hearing and submit our stories into the Congressional record.
https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/
We're so excited to virtually stand beside our fellow storyteller @amandabeatrizTX during today's #BeBoldEndHyde hearing and submit our stories into the Congressional record.
https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/
We know what it is to contemplate what’s next for our futures, we know what it is to make the decision to not grow our family beyond its current size, and we know what it is to go through the experience with and without the support of our government. https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/
We know what abortion care should look like in the United States, which is why we have joined together to speak out against the Hyde Amendment, a policy that has harmed us and our right to abortion care for too long.
It's time to #BeBoldEndHyde. https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/
It's time to #BeBoldEndHyde. https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/
The Hyde Amendment has existed as a discriminatory policy enforcing an economic caste in this nation, ensuring that people with no or low-incomes are unable to afford abortions as soon as we want care.
#BeBoldEndHyde
#BeBoldEndHyde
When former Congressman Henry Hyde of Illinois lobbied for the harmful policy that bears his name, he used hurtful, degrading imagery and descriptions about those of us who have abortions, particularly those of us who receive our health insurance through public support systems.
This racist and classist language has thrived for too long, keeping those of us who need care from being able to access it safely. The majority of us—people who have abortions— are people of color, so these restrictions harm us the most. We're over it. #BeBoldEndHyde
We dream of a world where every single person who wants abortions is able to receive care, without stress, worry, or harassment. One of the first critical steps to this liberated world is to lift all coverage bans on abortion and ensure that we are able to access care, freely.
Everyone loves someone who had an abortion. We had abortions and we deserve to be heard.
Here are our stories:
https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/ #BeBoldEndHyde
Here are our stories:
https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/ #BeBoldEndHyde
"This entire process made me go to the clinic multiple times, forced me to stay pregnant for an extra 12 weeks, and made my abortion more expensive...It was unfair Medicaid covered everything I needed for my daughter’s birth and my miscarriage, but not my abortion." — @HKGrayTx
"I was told that I couldn’t be helped because TX bans insurance coverage of abortion. I was told I wasn’t going to die; I only felt like I was. I was then forced to resume my job as an erotic dancer while 14 weeks pregnant in order to pay for the abortion care I needed." —Makayla
"When I gave birth to my 3 daughters, Medicaid covered every aspect of my pregnancy & the delivery of my daughters. So I assumed it would cover my abortion, but because of the Hyde Amendment, it didn’t. I had to figure out how to pay $900 for an abortion..." — @Be_the_Most
"I am thankful that Medicaid does cover a lot of it because there is just no way that I could have prepared for a baby and pay the medical bills at the same time...I wish all of my pregnancy healthcare was covered—including my abortion." — Angel
"The way Medicaid was set up it wouldn’t allow me to navigate health care systems using pubic assistance until I became 18 & could apply for services on my own. Even if TX Medicaid covered abortions, I still would’ve been pushed out of accessing care bc of my age."— @BECOWANDAFUL
"I have Medicaid for both of my children and it’s like night and day when it comes to Medicaid supporting doctors' appointments...having the baby, and everything...It’s wild how Medicaid supports any other healthcare procedure but treats (my) abortion so differently." — Kay
"I just remember holding my stomach because it was hurting and I was crying because I was scared...I told them I was having a miscarriage because I was scared that I could get arrested for doing my own abortion and because Medicaid insurance pays for miscarriage care." — Esmarie
A handful of states allow state Medicaid funds to cover abortion care. In our testimony, two We Testify storytellers share how much Medicaid coverage of their abortions saved their lives.
https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/
#BeBoldEndHyde
https://wetestify.org/we-testify-storytellers-statement-on-hearing-the-impact-on-women-seeking-an-abortion-but-are-denied-because-of-an-inability-to-pay/
#BeBoldEndHyde
"At 24, I found myself unemployed, struggling with an active addiction, and in poor mental health. It was at this time that I discovered that I was six-weeks pregnant. If not for Medicaid, I do not know how I would have saved up over $500 to afford the abortion." — Sally
"If MassHealth had not covered my abortion entirely I would have had no choice but to unwillingly continue my pregnancy...I can’t imagine how long it’d have taken me to raise the funds...I wasn’t in a safe position to tell anyone who [could] help & I was too sick to work." —Lexis
As We Testify abortion storytellers, an organization dedicated to the leadership and representation of people who have abortions—particularly at the intersection of race, class, and gender identity—we are opposed to any bans on insurance coverage for abortion.
#BeBoldEndHyde
#BeBoldEndHyde
