By Virginia Kondas, APRN

As an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) in one of Miami’s major medical centers, I’ve dedicated my career to caring for patients. Day after day, I see the profound impacts that healthcare policies have on individuals and families, particularly when it comes to reproductive health. That’s why as a caregiver I’m in strong support of Amendment 4.

I’m joined in this support almost unanimously by my fellow medical professionals, my 1199SEIU union family which is the largest union of healthcare workers in the state, as well as clear majority of Floridians in general.

Yet, because of a relative handful of politicians in Tallahassee, Florida now has one of the nation’s most extreme abortion bans that takes effect before most women even know their pregnant and that includes no real exceptions for rape, incest or the health of the patient.

Amendment 4 would restore reproductive rights to the women of Florida and ensure that personal healthcare decisions are left where they belong: between a woman and her doctor. 

With almost 30 years of training and experience in healthcare, I can tell you every pregnancy is different, and at times can be dangerous. Sometimes, it might be a grave risk to the mother, or a involve a condition that makes the baby nonviable outside the womb, or both. In these moments, the decision about whether to continue or terminate a pregnancy is intensely personal and always heart-wrenching. It should never be dictated by politicians who don’t understand the complexities of these situations, or worse, who don’t care.

But that’s exactly what Florida’s extreme abortion is doing. It’s putting the state between patients and the care they need, forcing women to either carry pregnancies to term against their will or seek dangerous, illegal alternatives.

The current ban also puts medical professionals in legal peril for providing necessary and sometimes emergency medical care. This is another chilling aspect of this issue for doctors, nurses and other caregivers in Florida. And the truth is bans don’t stop abortions from happening, they just make them less safe.  My medical colleagues know very well what happens when women are forced into desperate situations without legal and safe access to care.

In addition to my perspective as a nurse, this issue is very important and personal to me as a mother, as well.  

My 26-year-old daughter, like millions of other young women in Florida, are now subject to this draconian ban that has pushed us backward decades when it comes to medical care and personal freedom.

According to the U.S. Census, there are more than four million women in Florida of child-bearing age.  They all should have the right to determine their own private medical care and needs.  And not one should be forced into a decision or dangerous situation by the state.

This November, Floridians can restore proper rights and reproductive care in our state by joining the vast majority of doctors, nurses and other compassionate caregivers who are voting yes on Amendment 4.

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*This op-ed was published on Medium.

Virginia Kondas is an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) at UHealth Tower in Miami and a member of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, the largest union of hospital and nursing home caregivers in Florida.