CV NEWS FEED // Pro-life expert and Floridian Dr. Grazie Pozo Christie warns that Florida’s voters face a crucial decision this November with Amendment 4, the state constitutional amendment proposing the legalization of abortion up to the moment of birth.
Christie, a senior fellow at The Catholic Association, argued that the amendment achieves this extreme position due to its broad language, leaving terms such as “viability,” “patient’s health,” and “healthcare provider” undefined and subject to interpretation.
According to Christie, abortion activists’ strategic word choices, such as in this instance, have prompted courts to invalidate protections for the unborn in numerous states.
However, Amendment 4’s deliberately vague language poses concerns not only for unborn children but also for pregnant women and girls across the state.
“Again, this particular devil is in the details of the words ‘penalize, delay, or restrict,’” Christie wrote.
She explained that the broad terms used in the amendment may potentially hinder the implementation of necessary safety regulations during abortion procedures. For example, regulations aimed at ensuring maternal health could inadvertently lead to delays or penalties for providers who do not comply.
Christie’s concern is substantiated by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2016 decision in Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt: Texas had mandated that abortion centers meet standards akin to ambulatory surgical centers and required physicians to have admitting privileges.
The Court, drawing on precedents like Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, ruled these regulations unconstitutional, citing that they imposed an “undue burden” on access to abortion.
“Amendment 4 would pose similar problems for the regulation of abortion facilities in Florida,” Christie stated. “Ensuring that an abortion facility in which complicated late term surgical abortions are performed be regulated as extensively as a colonoscopy center would be outlawed.”
It would also be impossible to require that their abortionists have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital, a practice that’s essential for facilitating the prompt transfer of dangerously deteriorating patients to a hospital emergency room.
Christie emphasized that “such common-sense facility regulations are crucial for the protection of patients.”
She proceeded to illustrate the risks associated with inadequately regulated abortion facilities, particularly those performing late-term abortions.
In Pensacola, Florida, a clinic performing late-term abortions injured three women, who sustained severe internal damage. In Miami, a botched late-term abortion led to a baby being born alive at 22 weeks. The baby was discarded in a plastic bag.
“These are just two local instances,” Christie emphasized. She continued, describing the abortion industry as exactly that—an industry. She highlighted how pregnant women and girls rely on practitioners and “providers” who ought to be properly following regulations and being held accountable by state health authorities.
According to Christie, Amendment 4 would make this virtually impossible.
“Forget requiring that only qualified physicians perform abortions,” she stated. “Forget requiring that doorways be wide enough to admit a wheeled stretcher carrying a hemorrhaging woman on her way to the ambulance.”
Christie concluded, “Forget, pretty much, the health and safety of Florida women and girls in one of the most vulnerable moments of their lives.”
