A national human rights organization has filed a lawsuit against the New Brunswick government over abortion access in the province.
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) filed a statement of claim with the Court of Queen’s Bench in Fredericton this week.
They want the courts to repeal provincial legislation which prevents Medicare from covering abortions performed outside of designated hospitals.
“Today, we are making the beginning of the end,” said Noa Mendelsohn Aviv, equality program director with CCLA, during a teleconference Thursday.
Under Regulation 84-20 of the Medical Services Payment Act, abortions are only funded by the province at two hospitals in Moncton and one in Bathurst.
Mendelsohn Aviv said that means 90 per cent of New Brunswick women currently do not have abortion access in their own community.
“By restricting abortion access in this way, the province is violating women’s, girls’ and trans people’s fundamental rights to make their own choices, their right to privacy, to safety, and of course, the right to equality,” she said.
It is particularly troubling during a pandemic, she said, when travel is difficult or even impossible due to restrictions.
“This inaccessibility is no accident. It is because the Province of New Brunswick remains politically and principally opposed to providing barrier-free abortion services, particularly in a clinical setting,” said the association’s statement of claim, adding the province covers other out-of-hospital services, such as vasectomies.
Clinic 554 in Fredericton is the only facility to provide out-of-hospital abortions in the province, along with health services for the LGBTQ community. But patients have to pay for the procedure out of their pocket.
Dr. Adrian Edgar, the clinic’s medical director, said the “unconstitutional” restrictions have left thousands of people abandoned in their time of need, and he has witnessed first-hand the impact this “outdated” policy has had on New Brunswickers.
“More than a generation of New Brunswickers have been denied access to the same health care that every other Canadian is entitled to and this government has the chance now to break that cycle,” said Edgar.
“We call on them not to jeopardize our small province’s financial stability during a pandemic with a legal battle no other province would wage rather than simply committing to fair and just health care administration.”
Mendelsohn Aviv said they are confident that their court battle will be successful in the end.
“From everything we’ve seen so far, we expect the province to continue to fighting, but we are hopeful that they will have a change of heart,” she said.
A spokesperson for the provincial government declined to comment on the matter since it is currently before the courts.
