H.C.R. No. 34 Summary

• Designates the week of January 22-28, 2012 as Reproductive Rights Awareness Week in Ohio to encourage public awareness, conversation, and support for reproductive rights and justice.

• Acknowledges that women who plan pregnancies are more likely to seek prenatal care and that family planning services are linked to declines in maternal and infant mortality rates.

• Notes that the United States ranks 30th globally in maternal mortality rates among developed nations and that publicly funded contraceptive services prevent nearly two million unintended pregnancies annually.

• Recognizes that nearly half of all unintended pregnancies end in abortion and that abortion rates increase when contraception is less accessible to low-income women.

• Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to transmit copies of this resolution to Ohio news media.