Pullman is only a few miles away from Moscow, Idaho, where abortion is banned to the point where you can get criminalized for helping a pregnant minor get an abortion without parental permission. Further, over state lines in Idaho, gender affirming care is banned for youth under 18 years old. No one should ever have control over someone’s body. Not the law and not your family. 

For those who seek out healthcare services from Idaho to Washington, I would feel comfortable speaking openly about their freedom to make a choice here in Pullman, and how they are protected from by WA state against any red-state anti-abortion and anti-gender affirming investigations. The two cities of Moscow and Pullman have close ties among residents in many ways.  Regardless of what state you come from, I think we should take care of each other, including those who need a much-needed medical procedure. 

Pullman is fortunate to have Planned Parenthood where you can, at the very least, get an abortion pill (if you know in time) at a subsidized amount. However, sometimes you don’t feel symptoms until it is much later in the pregnancy and the abortion pill is not an option. For that reason, I also believe in advocating for more resources towards expanding our Planned Parenthood service offerings and infrastructure, like in-clinic abortions.  The closest Planned Parenthood which offers in-clinic abortions is in Spokane and, for someone with a lack of transportation, it could be an added major inconvenience on top of it also being a highly stressful situation for many. I can only imagine it being an even bigger barrier right now from someone from Moscow, Idaho, especially a minor. There should not be logistical barriers to getting an abortion that includes having someone else give permission on their bodies and/or actually getting to locations which provide and permit any type of abortions. 

I can heavily empathize with how mentally taxing the experience could be for someone with that background and how hard it could be to make a choice that is best for them and their future, even when laws and others want to have a say. For many, making decisions around these three important healthcare services have to be done in secret and I will ensure to advocate for continued protections against sharing data about healthcare services. What we do to our bodies does not need to be policed.