Letter to Abortion Supervisory Committee

30th November 2009

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your letter of 26 November 2009 and enclosures. It is noted that in the application from the New Zealand Family Planning Association [NZFPA] for an abortion licence for the Association’s Hamilton clinic it, states that;

“Family Planning proposes a system for EMA where women receive the medications [Mifepristone and Misoprostol] in the licenced premises, [Hamilton Family Planning Clinic] and then immediately go home or to alternative premises.”

It is noted that in the “Guidelines for the use of Mifepristine for Medical Abortion in New Zealand” that it is a requirement that women are required to wait in the licenced facility for some time after taking Mifepristine to receive appropriate medical care should the woman abort or develop a complication.

Our Society is not only concerned about the killing of unborn children but also the health and welfare of women. We are concerned that the protocol proposed by the NZPA would potentially endanger the health and welfare of women who have had a medical abortion.

The proposed protocol raises several important questions;

Is compliance with the guidelines a prerequisite for the NZFPA obtaining an abortion licence for the Hamilton clinic or any other of its clinics?

Does your Committee believe that the implementation of the protocol proposed by the NZFPA would not endanger women’s health?

Would your Committee be prepared to issue an abortion licence to the NZFPA or to any other applicant adhering to the stated protocol?

Are there other licenced abortion facilities in New Zealand that follow the protocol proposed by the NZFPA, if so what are their names?

Yours sincerely

Ken Orr

Secretary