Two years after the enactment of the law on legal (ILE) and voluntary (IVE) interruption of pregnancy, 132,754 practices were reported in the public health system, more than 2,000 professionals were trained and there are 1,443 health centers that guarantee it. in the country.
President Alberto Fernandez participated together with the Ministers of Health, Carla Vizzottiand Women, Gender and Diversity, Ayelen Mazzinaand the Legal and Technical Secretary, vilma ibarrafrom a meeting at Casa Rosada where the main advances and challenges were presented on the two-year anniversary of the enactment of Law 27,610 on the Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy.
“This law is a collective achievement, the result of a change in culture, of an enormous struggle that women led for years, and that one day a Government and a Congress were willing to recognize. It is a great triumph because it makes us a better society, because every time we expand rights we live in a better society”, affirmed the president.
And he added: “Abortion, as some wanted to put it, ceased to be a law that promotes death and is a law that promotes life, a law that promotes women’s health.”
The initiative was coordinated between the Government, the National Congress, the Campaign for the Right to Abortion, social organizations and territorial referents to achieve the law and make its application effective.
Among the most relevant data from the official report, it was known that there were 59,267 interruptions in the public health system from January to September 2022 and 73,487 in 2021, accounting for a total of 132,754 abortions. In turn, the practices were carried out thanks to a network of 1,443 health centers and public hospitals that guarantee IVE/ILE throughout the country.
In parallel, 434 health professionals achieved certifications in the first official course on abortion, in addition to more than 2,000 who received updates in accordance with the law. And the 0800 222 3444 Sexual Health telephone line received 13,752 consultations by IVE/ILE between January and October 2022 (89.8%) out of a total of 33,735 calls.
During the meeting in the Women’s Hall, which was characterized by a festive atmosphere, the officials invited Dolores Fenoy, creator of the telephone line and already retired from public service, to speak, who stressed that the people who answer the 0800 “They are health consultants, they are not operators; they are trained and listen attentively to guide and accompany”.
Vizzotti also highlighted the work of the teams from the Ministry of Health and the networking with provinces, organizations and social referents in the territories. He valued that “187 situations we received where there were barriers to accessing abortion have been resolved, and we resolved it through this network and because we have the law.”
Likewise, he highlighted that the medication misoprostol, combipack (mifepristone + misoprostol) and the equipment for manual uterine aspiration (AMEU) are distributed throughout the country through the logistics of the Remediar Program and are freely accessible.
During the meeting, Vizzotti presented an update of the Protocol for Comprehensive Care of people with the right to terminate a pregnancy with the incorporation of this year’s new World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.
For her part, Mazzina recalled that last week there were four lifeguards arrested and released for accompanying an abortion situation and that the portfolio she directs together with Health dealt with the situation: “It was an alert so that we continue to protect this right,” the minister pointed out.
All the officials highlighted the work of the former Minister of Health Ginés Gonzales García, a pioneer in including the ILE/IVE in public health policies, and the former Minister of Women, Gender and Diversity, Elizabeth Gómez Alcorta, in whose management the law was sanctioned.
On December 30, 2020, Congress approved the IVE/ILE law, which was promulgated on January 14, 2021 and contemplates a mixed model of terms and grounds. It recognizes the right to IVE up to and including the fourteenth week of gestation, simply by expressing the decision to abort, without having to explain reasons. As of the 15th week of gestation, it also recognizes the right to legal termination of pregnancy if it is the result of sexual violence or there is a danger to the health or life of the pregnant person.
