South Bend, IN – An administrative law judge for the Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) today recommended that the Department issue Whole Woman’s Health Alliance (WWHA) a license to operate an abortion clinic in South Bend, Indiana.
In her recommended order, the judge found that WWHA answered every question from the ISDH completely and truthfully and that the information WWHA provided was complete and accurate. She also found that the Department failed to prove their reasons for denying the license and also concluded that the Department failed to show that WWHA lacks a “reputable and responsible” character as they have wrongly claimed.
“We had a big win! It has been a long, uphill battle and today we finally have victory! In an order issued late this afternoon, a judge disagreed with the Indiana State Department of Health and concluded that Whole Woman’s Health Alliance was completely truthful and honest on our application and recommended that our clinic license be issued.” states Amy Hagstrom Miller founder and president of Whole Woman’s Health Alliance. “The state has until October 2 to appeal this decision. If that date passes without an appeal, we will open our doors to provide the care the community needs.
Families in South Bend, Indiana have been waiting for more than two years to regain access to safe, local abortion care while politicians have done everything in their power to prevent Whole Woman’s Health Alliance from offering vital health care services to the community. From the beginning of this journey in South Bend, we’ve been moved by the passion and dedication of local activists there who never gave up on the fight to bring abortion care back to South Bend. Even when times were tough, they never gave up.
Make no mistake about it – all of us at Whole Woman’s Health Alliance are thrilled with today’s ruling and what it means to families in the South Bend community. We know how hard it’s been for people in South Bend to access quality, compassionate abortion care for the last few years, and we are relieved that those barriers will soon be gone. At the same time, we are frustrated that so many South Bend residents have been caught in political cross fire and forced to navigate barriers resulting in delays or going without the healthcare they needed.
Enough is enough. The profound disrespect of women’s health and dignity demonstrated by politicians throughout this entire process is just another example of the unchecked nationwide trend of assaults on women’s rights happening across the country.”
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Whole Woman’s Health Alliance (WWHA) is working to strategically shift the stigma around abortion care in our culture and is committed to fostering open and honest conversations, lifting up all communities and transforming the abortion care environment. WWHA is a 501(c)3 organization leading powerful stigma eradication, culture change and community education work across the United States. The work is rooted in and informed by direct service work delivering high quality abortion care around the country. WWHA’s largest programs are the operation of clinics in Austin, Texas, Charlottesville, Virginia and South Bend, Indiana where we have opened new clinics in challenging places where access to quality care is under attack.
For more information: www.wholewomanshealthalliance.org