FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Press Office
Dakotans for Health
605-610-8146
Doctors for Freedom - Group of Physicians and Healthcare Professionals Join the Fight to Restore Reproductive Rights, Pass Freedom Amendment G
July 23, 2024
Rapid City, SD... A group of doctors and healthcare professionals has joined the fight to pass Freedom Amendment G.
“We believe medical professionals know best what healthcare procedures will keep their patients safe. We believe our patients know best what healthcare outcomes are best for them and their families. We believe the government and politicians do not know and can never know better than a woman what is best for a woman whose health and family are at stake, or better than a doctor trying to protect that woman and her family. Those are our beliefs. And they are why we have formed Doctors for Freedom, to work to end South Dakota’s total abortion ban.”
With these words, Amy Kelley, MD OBGYN, of Sioux Falls, and Marvin Buehner, MD OBGYN, of Rapid City, today announced the formation of a new organization, Doctors for Freedom, to restore the freedom of doctors and their patients to make personal healthcare decisions without government interference. It will join Dakotans for Health and the Freedom Amendment Coalition in its fight to end South Dakota’s total abortion ban.
Doctors, nurses, EMTs, first responders, and health care professionals of every kind vehemently oppose government interference in their work,” Dr. Kelley said. “Please do not threaten us with jail if we help a woman who was raped and desperately wants an early-term abortion. Please do not threaten us with jail if we help a woman for whom an unplanned pregnancy creates extreme medical risk or financial ruin. Do not threaten me with jail for doing my job – which sometimes involves ending pregnancies for medical complications, pregnancy complications or fatal birth defects. Let the women who are our patients, and we who are their doctors, do our jobs,” Dr. Kelley pleaded.
“It is not right that in South Dakota today neither doctors nor patients are free,” Dr. Buehner said. “The ‘Right to Life’ politicians in Pierre have made it abundantly clear that they intend to continue ignoring the will of the people, the professional freedom of doctors, and the personal freedom of female patients. The only way to restore reproductive freedom in South Dakota is to protect it in our Constitution and passing Freedom Amendment G is the way to make that happen,” he added.
“It is little wonder,” Dr. Buehner commented, “that many colleagues question whether to remain in a place where professional medical judgment is overridden by politicians and their abortion ban and doctors can be jailed because politicians do not like our judgment.”
“We need your help,” Dr. Kelley said. “Until we pass Freedom Amendment G, young health care professionals needed in South Dakota will be lost to states where they are free to practice their profession without government interference and threats of prosecution. Until we pass Amendment G, veteran healthcare professionals will keep looking over their shoulders and wondering whether to risk their licenses in a state where they are threatened with jail for doing what they believe is in the best interests of their patients. And until we pass Amendment G, South Dakota women and girls in need will be deprived the full range of professional health care they deserve,” Kelley concluded.
Dr. Kelley and Dr. Buehner ask all healthcare professionals – doctors, nurses, and others – willing to join the fight to protect the freedom of healthcare professionals to do their jobs without political interference to contact them at doctorsforfreedom@dakotans4health.com.
"We encourage all medical professionals who share our concerns about South Dakota’s radical abortion law to join the fight to pass Amendment G," said Freedom Amendment Coalition Chair Nancy Turbak.
Please direct press inquiries to press@dakotans4health.com.
About the Freedom Amendment Coalition:
The Freedom Amendment Coalition is a grassroots coalition dedicated to restoring reproductive rights in South Dakota by advocating for Amendment G, which aims to reinstate the protections of Roe v. Wade in the state.
####
About Dakotans for Health:
Dakotans for Health is a grassroots organization focused on healthcare and protecting the democratic process. The organization was instrumental in the successful 2022 campaign to expand Medicaid coverage to 52,000 low-income South Dakotans. Dakotans for Health will continue its efforts to ensure our neighbors have access to the care they need, no matter who they are, what they look like, or how much money they have.
Make a Donation to Restore Abortion Rights in South Dakota
Note: if you have saved your contribution information with ActBlue Express your donation will go through immediately.
P.S. You can always make a direct contribution to support the campaign too. We prefer ActBlue if you can. You can also send us a check to Dakotans for Health, PO Box 2063, Sioux Falls, SD 57101.
Comments