I guess the Alabama legislature took a look at what happened to Savita Halappanavar at University Hospital Galway, and liked what they saw. They want that to happen to Alabama women too. From the ACLU blog:
All miscarriages can be devastating. But, for women in Alabama, this nightmare could soon get a lot worse. This week, the Alabama Senate is set to consider a cruel bill (HB 31) that would permit the hospital staff, including any doctor, nurse, counselor, or lab technician, to refuse to participate in any phase of patient medical care related to ending a pregnancy, even if that is what a patient like this woman needs to protect her own health and future fertility.
Yes, you heard that right. Under this law, if you or a loved one is pregnant and go to an emergency room in Alabama because of serious complications, every medical professional in that emergency room could refuse to help you if the care you needed to protect you from serious harm to your health required ending the pregnancy.
“That can’t be true,” you say. “How could a doctor at my local hospital turn me away and refuse to treat me? Isn’t that malpractice?”
The Alabama legislature is one step ahead of you. The bill would also protect health care professionals from liability for refusing to provide necessary medical care. What’s more, the bill would exempt the hospital from liability under Alabama law. This means that even if the hospitals know that the on-duty doctor won’t provide appropriate medical care, Alabama law says that in most cases they have no obligation to find someone who will.
Unfuckingbelievable. The Savita case shocked people in Ireland; some of them went straight to the Dáil to demonstrate their shock; some months later the law was changed to prevent its happening again. The Alabama legislature wants to pass a law so that it will happen there. Talk about dropping all motherfucking pretense of giving a shit about women. Talk about dropping the mask. Like their god, they hate women.