See also: U.S. Supreme Court Decisions | Ohio Laws | Legal Status of Abortion Worldwide (ORTL web site)

Since its inception in 1971, Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati has been a primary force for grassroots pro-life awareness and action in the Cincinnati area. Its members work to establish a life-affirming culture by organizing legislative efforts, encouraging pro-life candidates and office holders, and monitoring public and private entities' decisions and practices affecting human life issues.

Decisions made by our elected officials and by the courts can be literally a matter of life and death for countless human beings. we are committed to protecting innocent human life through peaceful means, including actively working through the democratic process to support pro-life legislation and to oppose anti-life proposals.

Using the links above, learn more about the important decisions affecting the protection of innocent human life by reading court decisions such as Roe vs. Wade, Doe vs. Bolton, Planned Parenthood vs. Casey and many more. In addition, find out about existing laws that affect pro-life concerns.

Legislative action items and news are posted on this page. Check back regularly.

Link here to contact your legislators:

• Ohio House of Representative
• Ohio Senate
• U.S. Congress
• U.S. Senate
  
  
• Access to Ohio Government

ACTION ITEMS

UPDATE - Support Ohio's Ban on Human Cloning

April 9, 2008--On March 11th, 2008 the Ohio Senate Judiciary Civil Justice Committee heard testimony for the second time on Ohio's Ban on Human Cloning, S.B. 174.

Testimony was presented from supporters (no opposition attended), including Chris Long, President Ohio Christian Alliance; Dr. David Prentice, Senior Fellow for Life Sciences at the Family Research Council; and Dr. Dennis Sullivan, Director, Center for Bioethics at Cedarville University.

Ohio Right to Life submitted written testimony. Right to Life of Greater Cincinnati delivered to Chairman Senator David Goodman and Senator Buehrer petitions of support for a Human Cloning Ban submitted via the cincinnatirighttolife.org web site (and later to committee member Senator Bill Seitz from the Greater Cincinnati area). No committee vote was taken then on the bill.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008 S.B. 174 was scheduled for committee vote in the Senate Judiciary Civil Justice Committee to determine passage to go to vote on the floor of the Senate.

At this committee meeting, Dr. Douglas A. Kniss, Ph.D., director of perinatal research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Ohio State University spoke. He offered no written testimony to the committee, came as an interested party, and admitted he was not officially representing Ohio State University.

Even though S.B. 174 has been under review for a year, publicized, and testimony heard twice, this man now presented objections, admitting that he first heard about this legislation late the night before and he had not read the bill itself.

Committee Chairman Senator Goodman praised Dr. Kniss, committee member Senator Steve Stivers walked down from the committee's dias to give him a copy of the bill, and the committee voted to postpone the vote for one week for him (and others) to get their objections together and submit to the committee--enough time for the research lobby to go into action.

Ohio Christian Alliance President, Chris Long, who spearheaded work on this bill said, "It is quite unbelievable that Chairman Goodman gave preferential treatment to this individual who came in at the eleventh hour to offer such a reckless, haphazard testimony. In my seven years at the Statehouse, I've never seen anything like it."

Action: The Ohio Senate Judiciary Civil Justice Committee meets again Tuesday, April 15, 2008 for possible vote on this bill. Please contact committee members to support passage of Ohio's Human Cloning Ban with no language changes and no amendments:

David Goodman, Chair

Eric H. Kearney, Ranking Minority Member

Kirk Schuring, Vice Chair

Teresa Fedor
Steve Buehrer
Lance T. Mason
Keith Faber
Bill Seitz
Steve Stivers

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Oppose Prevention First Act
[Information Source: Ohio Right to Life]

April 2, 2008--See this important notice from Ohio Right to Life and encourage your senators and representatives to oppose The Prevention First Act.

NOTE especially the Legislation Summary following the Action Request for the full scope of this proposed legislation.

ACTION REQUEST

Planned Parenthood and NARAL are lobbying the legislature to support the "The Prevention First Act." We need our activists to contact their State Representative and State Senator now and strongly oppose this legislation.

Please urge your legislator to oppose H.B. 251 & S.B. 179, the Prevention First Act. Tell them:

• You don't want your tax money given to affiliates of Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the country.
• The morning-after pill can cause the death of a human embryo, and Ohio should not violate the freedom of conscience by requiring religious hospitals, pro-life pharmacists and pro-life taxpayers to provide or subsidize it.

You can find out who your State Representative is by going to: http://wwwhouse.state.oh.us/jsps/Representatives.jsp .

You can find out who your State Senator is by going to: http://www.senate.state.oh.us/senators/SenateZipSearch.html .

SUMMARY OF THE LEGISLATION

Additionally, the "Prevention First Act" would:

• Require hospitals, including religiously-affiliated hospitals, to provide misleading information stating that "emergency contraception" does not cause an abortion or interrupt an "established" pregnancy;
• Require the Ohio Department of Health to publish and distribute materials on how to use "emergency contraception"; and
• Establish a teen pregnancy prevention grant program for which abstinence-only programs would be specifically excluded from receiving grants.
• The Prevention First bill promotes "emergency contraception" despite the fact that a January 2007 study by leading proponents of the drug found that increased access to "emergency contraception" has not reduced rates of abortion or unintended pregnancies.