Columbus, OH — Representatives of Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights and Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom today issued the following statement after the Ohio Ballot Board affirmed “The Right to Reproductive Freedom with Protections for Health and Safety” constitutional amendment complies with Ohio’s single-subject rule. The Board’s decision clears the way for organizers and volunteers to begin collecting the signatures needed to place the amendment on the 2023 General Election ballot.
“We have been working toward this moment since June of 2022,” Dr. Marcela Azevedo, president of Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights said. “We have trained hundreds of volunteers who are eager to begin circulating petitions in communities across our state because they understand the urgent need to ensure that every Ohioan has access to comprehensive reproductive health care including abortion.”
“Today’s decision means that Ohioans are one step closer to being able to vote for reproductive freedom on the ballot this fall, and volunteers across Ohio are ready to put in the work to place this amendment on the ballot,” said Lauren Blauvelt of Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom. “This initiative puts Ohioans back in charge of their own personal healthcare decisions.”
“We have cleared two critical bureaucratic hurdles, and are excited to move into the next phase of our effort. This grassroots initiative — by and for the people of Ohio — will create common-sense guarantees for Ohioans’ freedom to make decisions about their own reproductive health care, including abortion. Ohioans strongly support this effort to secure reproductive freedom and keep government actors from infringing on every Ohioan’s right to make their own health care decisions,” said Kellie Copeland of Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom.
The groups are required to submit 413,000 valid signatures of Ohio voters by July 5 to qualify for the November General Election ballot. The groups plan to collect a minimum of 700,000 signatures to ensure they meet that requirement.
###
About Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights and Protect Choice Ohio
Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights (OPRR) and it’s grassroots network, Protect Choice Ohio, is a coalition of more than 2,000 Ohio physicians, allied medical professionals, business leaders and other non-partisan advocates that are mobilizing to ensure patients throughout Ohio have access to safe, legal, equitable, and comprehensive reproductive medical care including abortion for all Ohioans and to protect the doctor-patient relationship from government interference, so that people can make their own reproductive health care decisions. Visit ProtectChoiceOhio.com for more information.
About Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom
Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom is a coalition of leading Ohio-based rights groups formed by the ACLU of Ohio, Abortion Fund of Ohio, New Voices for Reproductive Justice, Ohio Women’s Alliance, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio, Preterm-Cleveland, Pro-Choice Ohio, and URGE. The reproductive rights, health, and justice organizations that make up Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom are trusted institutions that have been working in partnership for decades to protect and expand abortion access. For years, hundreds of thousands of Ohio families have relied on this coalition to help them make reproductive decisions that are right for them and their families. Learn more at www.