By Shennice Cleckley, a Mom from the Midlands and strong advocate for reproductive health rights.

o•pin•ion [uh-pin-yuhn] noun

1. 1.a belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.
2. 2. a personal view, attitude, or appraisal.
3. 3. the formal expression of a professional judgment: to ask for a second medical opinion.
4.     

The above reference to the word opinion has three definitions. The first relates to a belief system that is formed based on not enough information. Unfortunately the youth in South Carolina undergo this every definition when it relates to comprehensive sex education.  We are not giving our youth all the information they need to remain safe.  We as a state don’t equip them with the knowledge needed to make an informed decision.  Everybody has a right to knowledge. 

This is why I support Bee Day 2012.  Bee Day , Tell Them’s annual lobby day, is a chance for members from all corners of our state to speak in one voice and show our lawmakers that citizens care about reproductive health issues.  Bee Day is a platform for my “personal view, attitude or appraisal” to be heard by my elected officials (reference to definition two).  In my “formal expression of a professional judgment” as a Community Outreach Coordinator, it is in the best interest for all South Carolinians to not only join Tell Them but to participate in our Bee Day activities. Sign the petition. Send an email. And tell a friend!  Make your voice a voice of reason!

By Shennice Cleckley, a Mom from the Midlands and strong advocate for reproductive health rights.

At Tell Them, we celebrate our right to assemble by producing an awesome event called Bee Day. 

What is Bee Day?  Bee Day is a virtual and live lobby day!   Each year we send thousands of emails to South Carolina Legislators charged with action to take a stand for responsible reproductive legislation.  We also have some phenomenal members come to Columbia and meet their legislators in person.  

In an effort to rally and energize the troops, I have constructed a few battle cries we could use on March 28th. 

• • We’re gonna sting the Statehouse!
• • Let’s SWARM!
• • Polish your stingers gang, I’m going in!
• • Who you calling Honey!  I am a Queen Bee!
• • Ready, AIM, STING!
•     

Now that you energized!  Get ready by signing the Bill of Rights and set your calendars for March 28th.  GO spread the word about Tell Them’s Bee Day 2012.

It’s that time of year again – Bee Day!

Bee Day is Tell Them‘s annual lobby day which features both online and in-person actions.

The goal of Bee Day is to bring together Tell Them members and reproductive health advocates from across South Carolina to speak in a united voice about a specific issues – all within 24 hours.

This year’s theme is “Access to Reproductive Health Information and Services.” In order to decrease the rates of teen pregnancy and STIs in South Carolina, we need to ensure that everybody has access to quality, affordable information and services.

How Can You Participate in Bee Day?

• - Sign the Bill of Rights: Tell Them believes that everybody has the right to to uncensored reproductive health education and access to services. Sign our Bill of Rights and tell your legislator that you agree with prevention policies. We’ll take the full list of signatures up to the Statehouse on Bee Day.
• - Send an email on March 28th: Watch your email and Facebook on March 28th – we’ll be sending out our annual Bee Day email. Take action by sending an email to your legislators and joining together in a unified voice of reason.
• - Join Tell Them at the Statehouse: Want to visit with your legislators in person? Join Tell Them advocates from across the state as we visit the Statehouse and meet with legislators one-on-one. Space is limited: email info@tellthemsc.org for more information.
•     

Now in it’s 3rd year, Bee Day has connected over 3,000 constituents with members of the South Carolina Legislature and has sent over 5,000 emails.

We stand together, a unified voice of reason, in support of age appropriate reproductive health education and access to reproductive health counseling and services for all South Carolinians.

At 11:30 last night, the SC House and Senate passed H. 3245, the Two Trip Ultrasound Mandate. The final version of the bill has been converted into a women’s rights bill, and therefore passed with our support.

The final version of H. 3245 eliminated the two trips initially required by the House version, and instead, allows women to access a series of information about healthcare and medical options from numerous sources. These include private physicians, local clinics, and the Department of Health website.

The approved bill is also significant because it does not contain any form of ultrasound requirement, nor does it mandate that women visit medical facilities more than once. These proposals were huge burdens for women throughout the state, and we removed after heavy pressure from health advocacy groups and our Tell Them members.

This is the only bill on our issues that passed the SC Legislature during the 2009-2010 legislative session (13 were proposed) – and it was only passed after tremendous pressure to remove most of the restrictive language. In fact, supporters of our proposed compromise language were such a strong force that this bill actually expands women’s access to medical information.

This is a huge victory for Tell Them and our supporters. This win has been 2 years in the making, and your support and effort made this possible. Thank you for all your hard work.

When I moved to South Carolina, it was within the first few weeks that I pledged to ETV. Every year, during the spring pledge drive, I eagerly await the morning when they “match” funds, and I make the call, credit card in hand, ready to show my support for public radio.

In his series of budget cuts, Governor Sanford cut $5.2 million from ETV’s annual budget- that’s a 52% cut. This is a huge issue that jeopardizes a “jewel of South Carolina.”

ETV is making a plea- contact your legislator today and ask them to override the budget cuts. Click here to read their announcement.

In my opinion, ETV needs more financial backing, not less. They provide an invaluable service in South Carolina, and I cannot imagine my morning commute without them.

*** UPDATE*** The House has overridden Governor Sanford’s cut. Now onto the Senate! (June 16)

Today was a huge step forward for South Carolina!

The General Assembly passed the Conference Committee Report on the budget which ensures funding and coverage for essential programs like Medicaid and HIV/AIDS prevention.

The budget now goes to the Governor for his signature.

Thank you to the 100+ Tell Them members who sent emails or made phone calls to their House members. Your voices were heard and the bill was passed!

Due to a resolution passed yesterday, the General Assembly will be back on June 15th to handle any further items.

H.3245- The Two Trip Ultrasound Requirement Bill is not finalized with a Conference Committee Report, and can still be called up for a Conference Committee meeting. This will be on the table until June 17th.

More to come- thank you for your time and efforts!

The Conference Committee on H. 3245- The Two Trip Ultrasound Requirement Bill DID NOT reach a compromise this morning.

This makes it very unlikely that this bill will pass this legislative session.

This morning, Senator Bryant offered 4 new options and potential compromises in an attempt to get something passed. They included keeping the 1-hour waiting period for cases of rape, incest and ‘medical necessity;” allowing an ultrasound to be performed at a different facility at least 24 hours in advance, and requiring the doctor to report which waiting period applied to each procedure, requiring a 36-hour requirement.

Representative Delleny opposed all of them. The other house and Senate members supported certain options, but in the end, no compromise was agreed upon.

This is a huge victory for the Tell Them network. We have been fighting this bill for almost 2 years, and it’s because of YOUR hard work, emails, phone calls, appearances at hearings, comments on Facebook, retweets from Twitter, letters to the editor and group conversations that we have been so successful.

THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING! Your voices have spoken, and your efforts have paid off.

We will know for sure tomorrow at 5pm whether or not this bill is dead. Keep your eyes open- we’ll send out an update!

The South Carolina Senate voted against the healthcare cuts that passed the House last week. Because of the Senate’s refusal to cut HIV/AIDS funding and cancer screenings, the budget moves to a conference committee, where representatives from both the House and Senate will work together to find a compromise.

The major issue at hand is finding $50.2 million in funding for the South Carolina courts and Department of Public Safety. Originally, the Senate proposed raising and initiating fees and fines for court servies in order to account for $21 million.

But Gov. Sanford vetoed that provision, and the House failed to secure the votes required to overturn the decision. Instead, they proposed ending all HIV/AIDS prevention and drug assistance funding, limiting perscriptions for Medicaid patients and cap the eligability of the state’s Children’s Health Insurance Program.

Conference Committee members have been selected and will meet soon to discuss compromises and how to get the budget passed before the legislature adjourns on June 3.

According to the Greenville News, “House Republicans cut $50 million in health programs, including cancer screening, HIV and kidney disease prevention, rural hospital grants, free medical clinics, smoking cessation and trauma centers. Medicaid prescriptions would be capped at three per month, and no new enrollments would be allowed in the state’s health insurance program for children.”

These cuts were made after the House failed to override Governor Sanford’s veto of $20 million in new court fees. Representative Joe Neal (D-Richland) is quoted in the State paper: “It is very clear what the intent of this is. It is punishment for not going along with the vote.”

Representative Gilda Cobb-Hunter said that the House has “stuck it to poor people. To heck with the Democrats who care about the poor. It would be funny if it were not so sad.”

Click here to read the article in the State

This loss of funding is catastrophic to the millions of South Carolina tax-payers who are HIV positive and rely on these programs for their medications.

Click here to read more about this story

This morning, the Conference Committee met to discuss H. 3245- the Two Trip Ultrasound Requirement Bill. Chairman Bryant informed the committee that the Senate and House Attorneys were trying to find a compromise between the two bills, and until that time, the Conference Committee would be in recess.

The Committee agreed that they would be willing to resume discussions after the session adjourns on June 3rd in order to pass  this bill. The rules state that a Conference Committee may meet during the period in which vetoes are being voted upon (June 4 – 15). 

Tell Them member Elizabeth Fort wrote a phenomenal Letter to the Editor on the Two Trip Ultrasound Requirement Bill that was published in the Spartanburg Herald Journal this weekend. Click here to read her letter.

We’ll keep you updated as the session comes to a close.