Sheehy is a threat to Montanans’ reproductive rights

Two years ago, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, gutting protections for reproductive health care that had been in place for women and doctors for nearly 50 years. As the director of All Families Healthcare — one of only five clinics in Montana that provides abortion access — I know firsthand the threat that anti-choice Republicans place on our freedoms, and that is why we can’t let Tim Sheehy represent Montana in the U.S. Senate.

In Montana, abortion is still legal and accessible. Our state Constitution has protected our rights and stopped a number of abortion bans, passed and signed into law by the Republican-controlled state Legislature and Gov. Greg Gianforte, from going into effect.

But abortion access is teetering on the brink. Politicians aim to end those protections here in Montana. And it’s never been more important to be represented on a federal level by someone like Sen. Jon Tester who will fight to protect every Montanans’ right to make their own health care decisions, free from political interference or government intrusion.

Sheehy wants to take this freedom away from women, their health care providers, and their families, and put it instead in the hands of politicians like him. Sheehy supports a national abortion ban, which would endanger Montana women. Since Roe was overturned, maternal mortality rates are 62% higher in states that have banned and restricted access to abortion compared to states where abortion is less restricted. Abortion bans can also prevent women from receiving necessary health care services during miscarriages or stillbirths, exacerbating a devastating loss. 

For women in rural communities, the consequences of banning abortion are staggering. Already, Montana women drive hours to seek treatment at my clinic. 

For women living in states that have banned abortion, the journey itself to receive care can take days — let alone weeks of planning, finding childcare, taking time off work, and getting off of wait lists. If clinics like ours close, Montana women lose a lifeline, resulting in unsafe pregnancies and preventable health risks. 

Sheehy has made it clear that he will not protect other crucially important reproductive health care. He has refused to say that he would support The Right to IVF Act, which would provide federal protections for IVF treatment, and The Right to Contraception Act, which would protect access to birth control. Tester voted for both. 

Sheehy is also one of the only Senate candidates to be endorsed by Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, an extreme anti-abortion organization that is pushing for a national abortion ban and applauded an Alabama court decision that blocked IVF treatment appointments. 

This anniversary is a stark reminder of the fragility of our freedoms. While Sheehy wants to dismantle our liberties, Tester has never stopped fighting to ensure that women can make their own choices. Tester has voted to codify Roe, protect access to IVF treatment and birth control, and ensure that all women can make their own healthcare choices without politicians getting in the way. 

This November, I will be voting for Tester, the only candidate that trusts Montana women to make their own healthcare decisions. The stakes are too high to sit this one out.

Helen Weems is the founder and director of All Families Healthcare in Whitefish. The clinic provides contraception, abortion and sexual health care services.