About Us
OPRR Board of Directors
Dr. Marcela Azevedo
Co-Founder, President
Dr. Lauren Beene
Co-Founder,
Executive Director
Dr. Nancy Li
Secretary
Dr. Aziza Wahby
Treasurer
History
In the wake of the Dobbs decision on June 22, 2022, followed by Ohio’s near-total statewide abortion ban, two doctors connected on Facebook to discuss the impact on their patients. Days later, they wrote and circulated a letter to their colleagues that decried “…the loss of bodily autonomy, basic human rights, and access to life-saving medical care” caused by Ohio’s abortion ban. In less than one week, over 1,000 doctors signed the letter, which was published as a full-page ad in the Columbus Dispatch under the banner of a newly formed organization: Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights (OPRR).
Since then, over 4,000 doctors and healthcare professionals have joined us in the fight to keep government & politicians out of Ohioans’ reproductive healthcare decisions. OPRR evolved from this group of concerned physicians into a broad-based grassroots coalition Protect Choice Ohio, together training thousands of volunteers who succeeded in gathering the signatures needed to place the Reproductive Freedom Amendment on the November 2023 general election ballot.
After seeing the energy behind our movement, anti-abortion extremists spent over $20 million dollars to put on a special election trying to make it harder to pass constitutional amendments like ours. Ohioans overwhelmingly voted against this obvious attempt to silence their voices and to block the Reproductive Freedom Amendment from passing.
Our Current Work
OPRR and our coalition Protect Choice Ohio have joined forces with statewide reproductive health, rights, & justice organizations to form the Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights. This powerful organization is leading the campaign to secure passage of the Reproductive Freedom Amendment in fall 2023.
This campaign is essential because most Ohioans believe their neighbors have the right to make their own reproductive healthcare decisions without government interference. Still, there will be a massive amount of disinformation and stigma spread by out-of-state billionaires to try to manipulate the election in their favor.
Fortunately, we will not be facing these challenges alone. We are joined by diverse professional medical societies, physician groups, grassroots organizations, and respected advocate groups — who are all working to support and pass the Reproductive Freedom Amendment.
See Our Endorsements
Join OPRR
Are you a physician or allied health professional? To join the Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights (OPRR), you only need to sign in support of our Letter to Our Patients on the Loss of Reproductive Rights. This “Letter of Dissent” was published as a full-page ad in the Columbus Dispatch in summer 2022.
Download the Letter
Physicians: Join OPRR
Allied Health: Join OPRR
Why Reproductive Rights Matter
Abortion is a complex and personal decision that should be made between a patient and their doctor or healthcare provider. Ohio’s current laws create barriers for individuals seeking safe and legal abortion services, and there will likely be a near-total abortion ban again in Ohio. We must pass the Reproductive Freedom Amendment this fall to enshrine the right to reproductive freedom in Ohio’s constitution.
Explore the facts:
- There is a broad medical consensus that abortion is an essential part of reproductive health care.
- Roughly one-quarter of women in the United States access abortion care in their lifetime.
- Restricting access to abortion forces some pregnant people to continue their pregnancies to delivery, leaving them to face the many health risks associated with pregnancy and childbirth.
- Restrictive laws criminalize physicians’ duty of care.
- Restrictive laws on abortion place physicians in an ethical dilemma of choosing between their obligation to provide the best available medical care and substantial legal (sometimes criminal) penalties.
- Like all medical matters, abortion is personal, and decisions should be made only by patients in consultation with their physicians and health care professionals.
Join OPRR
Learn more about Issue 1, the Reproductive Freedom Amendment
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