Don't let politics trump medicine: Protecting abortion access in South Dakota

This presentation describes the perspective of a practicing obstetrician in Rapid City, South Dakota, who participated in the 2006 campaign to overturn the most extreme abortion legislation ever passed by a state government. Despite hearing cogent arguments explaining the abortion ban's great risk to the health of the women of South Dakota, the state legislature passed the bill, rejecting attempts to amend it with exceptions for victims of rape, incest, or women with serious health conditions. Dr. Buehner's involvement in the issue grew as he realized that state policy was being developed based on a preconceived anti-abortion agenda, without regard to scientific and medical evidence. When Governor Mike Rounds signed this bill into law, Dr. Buehner became a leader in the campaign to repeal the ban. He found that a pervasive environment of intimidation by anti-abortion forces initially prevented most South Dakota physicians from speaking out against the abortion ban, but that as the movement gained momentum, many physicians joined in the public discussion. Dr. Buehner will discuss physician activism in South Dakota prior to the 2006 election, the contribution of this activism to public debate, and its ultimate consequence of moderating state abortion policy.