All last year, federal legislation was proposed that threatened women's access to vital health care, including an unprecedented attempt to restrict abortion. There are proposals that passed in the House that would: ban insurance coverage for abortion on the health care exchanges and threaten to end all private insurance coverage for abortion and let a woman die if a hospital has "moral or religious" objections to providing emergency treatment. As we look to 2012, we expect the fight to defund family planning and women's health clinics to continue.
Tell Congress, the President, and the world why YOUR health matters, and how shutting down women's health clinics, blocking insurance coverage for abortion, and reducing access to birth control would impact your life.
" We ALL need to speak up NOW to send our message that Our Health Matters. We invite you, women and men of all ages, to share your story today. Why does your freedom of choice matter? Why does your health matter?"
Why does your freedom of choice matter? Why does your health matter? If you can, include the state where you live and the phrase "My Health Matters" at the end of your video. Check out the MyHealthMatters campaign submissions.
(Note: If you do not want to create a YouTube account, please send your video to brielle@nownyc.org and we will post to our channel)
2) When uploading your story, use the title "My Health Matters", so that your video is attached to our campaign when people search the slogan, and include an identifier - ex: "My Health Matters - Jen from Brooklyn"or "My Health Matters - My Abortion Story" or "My Health Matters - Cancer Screening Saved My Life" - be sure to tag your video with phrases like "my health matters" and "clinic access" - Then Tweet your video #myhealthmatters and share on Facebook. *Please keep your video to about 1 to 3 minutes in length.
What You Can Say
Tell your whole story or just make a short powerful statement. Here are some examples from real women:
My Health Matters to me because I've seen far too many women sacrifice their own health just because they can't afford the health care. -Kayla
My Health Matters because I am a person, and no matter who you are and where you are, you deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. -Lauren
My Reproductive Health Matters because I have a right to make decisions for my own body. -Amanda
