Salem Abortion Protections Get City Council's Added Stamp Of Approval

SALEM, MA — A city ordinance designed to build on the state's new law protecting providers of abortion and other reproductive services against prosecution in other states or jurisdictions gained unanimous Salem City Council approval on Thursday night.

The ordinance, put forth by Mayor Kim Driscoll earlier this month, would prohibit any city employee, contractor, or recipient of city funding from providing information or assistance to any jurisdiction or individual engaged in a prosecution, lawsuit, or extradition due to a lawfully protected health care service in Massachusetts. It also prevents municipal resources or funds from being used to do so.

"Codifying this locally sends a really clear and distinct message about our values and who we are as a community," Salem Ward 2 City Councilor Caroline Watson-Felt said. "I think that's incredibly important and it's something for which I am also personally very, very grateful. In addition to our gratitude to the state for its swift and legal action, I am also proud to support this and grateful that it was brought forward."

Ward 6 City Councilor Meg Riccardi said the ordinance makes Salem a "sanctuary city but for health care, which I think is a great summation for this."

City Councilor At-Large Alice Merkl added: "The importance of this cannot be overstated. The ordinance builds on the state's recently adopted new law by prohibiting the city with any actions targeting the recipient or providing legally protected health care."

Driscoll said earlier this month the city is also in the process of purchasing, installing and maintaining emergency contraception-dispensing machines in public restrooms. The machines will be stocked with at-cost, over-the-counter emergency contraception, as well as free or at-cost other public health items.

Patch reached out to the SalemMayor's Office for clarification on some aspects of the dispensed "emergency conception" earlier this month and was told planning is focused on providing the "Plan B-type" products that are currently available over the counter at many retail locations.

Under Food and Drug Administration regulations and authorizations for emergency contraception, there is no age requirement for the purchase of emergency contraception, and therefore "we do not plan to place any age restrictions" on purchases.

Current planning does not include the installation of the dispensers in schools. Initial locations will be "select publicly accessible areas" with the "potential to expand to other locations throughout Salem in the near future."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)