The Florida agency charged with regulating health care providers, including abortion clinics, has publicly opposed a proposed ballot amendment that would guarantee abortion rights, a move critics say is unethical and, perhaps, a violation of state law.
“Florida is protecting lives,” reads the top of a website by the Agency for Health Care Administration. “Don’t let the dermoners lie to you.”
The announcement, promoted Thursday on social media platform X by agency Secretary Jason Weida, claims the proposed amendment, known as Amendment 4, “threatens the safety of women.” He lists several examples of what he says is the “truth” about the effects of the amendment, usually using language used by campaigns for or against the ballot question. The website also includes data on political donations to pro-reform campaigns.
The website appears to be an aggressive move by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration against a ballot measure that would allow abortions in Florida “prior to viability,” usually up to 24 weeks of pregnancy. Polls suggest a majority of Florida voters favor the measure, though it would need more than 60 percent support to pass in November.
Mr. DeSantis, a Republican, has vowed to defeat the measure and is raising money in a political committee against Amendment 4. But Governor DeSantis is an elected official. Mr. Weida, not his designated secretary, nor other agency employees.
State Representative Anna V., Democrat of Orlando. “You’re not supposed to use your position in state government to campaign,” Escamani said, adding that the agency “crossed a line.” “If you are going to campaign, you have to give financial disclosure. There are all kinds of question marks here.”
The health agency did not respond to an emailed request for comment Thursday evening. In his post on X, Mr. Weida said the “improved transparency page” would “confront the lies and misinformation surrounding Florida’s abortion laws.”
In 2022, Governor DeSantis signed a law banning abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy. And last year, Mr. DeSantis and Republican lawmakers More restricted The process, which may Now banned Six weeks later in Florida.
The DeSantis administration has taken other steps to push back against Amendment 4. A state panel, appointed mostly by Republicans. recognized language With amendments that are required for the financial impact statement in July.
The statement said Amendment 4 would result in “significantly” more abortions and fewer live births, and could force the state to pay higher legal costs to settle lawsuits that may result. It also says that an increase in abortions “could negatively impact state and local revenue growth over time.”
Across the country, abortion-rights groups have won on all seven of the Supreme Court’s ballot measures. overturned Roe v. Wed in June 2022, even in red states like Kansas and Kentucky. In November, 10 states, including Florida, will have ballot reform Asking voters whether to enshrine the right to abortion in their state constitutions.
Republicans and anti-abortion groups, openly fearful that the measure would pass, have worked aggressively to disqualify signatures on petitions seeking to establish ballot measures, making it more difficult for the measure to pass. Anti-abortion groups are suing Missouri, Nebraska and South Dakota to strike the certification measure on the ballot.
In recent weeks, they have tried to shape the official language around the measure, and with Republicans in control of the process in many states, they have largely succeeded. Propaganda pamphlets k Arizona will send ballot measure to voters Refer to the phrase “unborn human being” that anti-abortion groups prefer to describe the embryo or fetus.
Thursday, A Missouri court ruled Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft said the ballot language allowed to appear on summaries at polling places was “inappropriate, inadequate, inaccurate and misleading” and “gives voters a false idea of what the amendment will accomplish.”
Mr. Ashcroft, a Republican who strongly opposes abortion, allowed the summary saying that a “yes” vote would, among other things, “enshrine in the Missouri Constitution the right to abortion at any point in pregnancy” and “prohibit any regulation of abortion, regulations designed to protect women who have abortions.” including.”
Abortion rights groups claimed that, like nearly every other state, the amendment would allow Missouri to regulate abortions after viability.
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