“We’re disappointed,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now. “We, as advocates, knew, going into this short legislative session, that we were all working against the clock.

“We’re encouraged that it got out of committee, and by the House and Senate co-sponsors. … We’re going to use this time to see if there’s anything we can add or adjust in the language to strengthen the bill. And we’re confident we’ll be able to get it over the finish line next session.”

“We are so grateful for the leadership of She Leads Justice, the Connecticut Working Families Party, members of the Paid Sick Days Coalition, and Sen. Julie Kushner for their tireless advocacy to expand paid sick leave to workers across Connecticut,” said Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now, an advocacy group.

In Connecticut, almost two-thirds of all abortions are induced through medicine. Liz Gustafson had one six years ago.

“Because I knew then, and I still know now, just how safe and effective medication abortion is, I made a decision that was best for my circumstances,” said Gustafson, who is now the Connecticut director for Reproductive Equity Now.

“While providers at Catholic health institutions may be barred from providing reproductive care and gender-affirming care under the institution’s directives, they can also face employment repercussions simply for giving their patients accurate information about their health and where they can access care,” Liz Gustafson, Connecticut state director of Reproductive Equity Now said in written testimony. “The lack of any information sharing about where else a patient might be able to go to seek care can lead to devastating delays. Patients may not even be aware that a health care facility would deny them both health care services and medically accurate information regarding their health.

As abortion providers and advocates in the Nutmeg State, we are reflecting on these big changes for Hartford GYN today and especially Sunday, March 10 — on Abortion Provider Appreciation Day. This day honors the life of Dr. David Gunn, an incredibly brave physician who provided abortion care across the deep South, and who was murdered by an anti-abortion extremist on this day in 1993. We celebrate this holiday to honor our communities’ providers, but also recognize and recommit to protecting these heroes as threats against abortion providers rise again in the post-Dobbs era.