ORDINANCE NO.______, SERIES 2021
title
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE LOUISVILLE/JEFFERSON COUNTY METRO CODE OF ORDINANCES TO ENSURE SAFE, UNOBSTRUCTED ENTRY TO AND EXIT FROM A HEALTHCARE FACILITY (AMENDMENT BY SUBSTITUTION)(AS AMENDED).
body
SPONSORED BY: COUNCIL MEMBERS CHAMBERS ARMSTRONG, ARTHUR,
HOLLANDER, AND PRESIDENT JAMES
WHEREAS, the Louisville Metro Council recognizes that unimpeded access to healthcare facilities for the purpose of obtaining medical counseling and treatment is imperative to the safety and well-being of this city and community;
WHEREAS, preventing the willful obstruction of a person's access to medical counseling and treatment at a healthcare facility is a matter of city-wide concern;
WHEREAS, there is a documented history of obstruction of and interference with people's access to healthcare facilities in Louisville;
WHEREAS, between January 2021 through March 2021, there has been a total of at least 1,447 reported protestors outside of the EMW Women's Surgical Center ("EMW Clinic") with about 23 protestors on any given day;
WHEREAS, report logs for the EMW Clinic indicate a regular pattern of obstruction, trespassing, assault and stalking;
WHEREAS, report logs for the EMW Clinic indicate that the police were called on multiple occasions for the assault and stalking of patients;
WHEREAS, a study of nine (9) reproductive health clinics in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia conducted by the Ohio Policy Evaluation Network (OPEN) found that more than fifty (50) percent of patients from the EMW clinic reported protestors as a challenge to receiving healthcare; this is 3 times the average for the other eight (8) clinics combined;
WHEREAS, a memorandum from the Louisville Metro Police Department ("LMPD") indicates that on April 3, 2021, multiple protest groups from out of town were present outside of the EMW Clinic; See LMPD Memorandum from April 5, 2021;
WHEREAS, the memora...
Click here for full text