In response to cowardly acts of intimidation and threats of violence, we are calling on GRR!s in Maine to send messages of encouragement, courage and solidarity with the targeted sponsors of Maine’s shield bill (LD 227), members of the HCIFS legislative committee, and legislative leadership. We know these are frightening times, and we know that abortion rights and transgender rights are inextricably bound together. We must speak as loudly—or LOUDER!—than those who seek to rule by fear and bigotry.
Can you send an email today to Senator Donna Bailey, Representative Anne Perry and other legislative leaders who are attempting to make Maine a safer state for all?
Key Messages:
- We are relieved that no one was injured on Friday; serving as a legislator should not involve risks to your safety.
- We are with you, and we support your critical work for healthcare access for all!
- The violent pushback on LD 227 is a clear indication of how critical this work is; keep going!
- Thank you for leading on these issues of safety for all who live in and visit our beautiful state.
Contact Information for LD 227 Sponsors, HCIFS Committee Members + Legislative Leadership:
House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross, Rachel.TalbotRoss@legislature.maine.gov
Senate President Troy Jackson, Troy.Jackson@legislature.maine.gov
Committee On Health Coverage, Insurance and Financial Services
Bill Sponsor + Senator Donna Bailey, Chair (D), donna.bailey@legislature.maine.gov
Bill Sponsor + Representative Anne C. Perry (D), Anne.Perry@legislature.maine.gov
Senator Eric Brakey (R), eric.brakey@legislature.maine.gov
Senator Cameron Reny (D), cameron.reny@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Poppy Arford (D), Poppy.Arford@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Sally Jeane Cluchey (D), Sally.Cluchey@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Scott Wynn Cyrway (R), Scott.Cyrway@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Anne-Marie Mastraccio (D), Anne-Marie.Mastraccio@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Kristi Michele Mathieson (D), Kristi.Mathieson@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Joshua Morris (R), Joshua.Morris@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Robert W. Nutting (R), Robert.Nutting@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Jane P. Pringle (D), jane.pringle@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Gregory Lewis Swallow (R), Gregory.Swallow@legislature.maine.gov
More context and guidance from our friends at GLAD:
- LD 227 protects established, standard-of care reproductive and transgender medical care that is legal in Maine. It ensures that Maine providers, patients receiving care in Maine, and our health care infrastructure are not entangled in other states’ efforts to apply their laws across state lines.
- Passing LD 227 will put Maine in the company of its neighbors in Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, along with 14 other states and DC that have acted to protect health care providers and access to essential care. This bill will help ensure Maine can retain and recruit primary care and family doctors, pediatricians, and other essential health care workers without interference from other states’ laws.
- State bans on health care for transgender adolescents – 23 at present – have been devastating for transgender young people who need care. It is also devastating for their parents whose home states block young people from continuing the medical care that has helped their children thrive and flourish. Transgender young people deserve to be healthy and happy. Their parents deserve to have access to sound information about how they can best support their kids.
- Transgender people are part of our families, neighborhoods, and communities and belong in Maine as much as anyone else. While politicians in some states are targeting transgender people and banning access to life-saving health care, LD 227 will protect access to necessary reproductive and transgender health care according to professional standards of care without undo interference by laws from outside the state
- Maine health care providers work every day to deliver high quality, compassionate, evidence-based medical care to patients, even in the face of harassment and threats of violence. LD 227 will ensure they can continue to do their jobs without facing added threats of criminal and civil penalties from other states who have banned access to essential health care for political, not medical, reasons.
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