# Women's Health Protection Act (a pro-choice Senate bill) **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [July 16, 2014, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/womens-health-protection-act-a-pro-choice-senate-bill/693282 "2014-07-16T16:34:09Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2014, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/womens-health-protection-act-a-pro-choice-senate-bill/693282/61 "2014-07-25T10:05:47Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > It was always a pretty terrible comparison. Other outpatient surgical procedures are better for comparison than dentistry. > > For example, what’s the mortality rate for arthroscopic knee surgery compared to abortion? Arthroscopic knee surgery resulted in a 30 day mortality rate of 65 deaths in 180,717 procedures (36 per 100,000) in [one study](http://www.academia.edu/2579372/Adverse_Outcomes_Associated_With_Elective_Knee_Arthroscopy_A_Population-Based_Cohort_Study). Ten of those deaths occurred during the same hospital admission in which the procedure was performed (5.5 per 100,000) according to the study. Again, abortion had a mortality rate of 0.6 per 100,000. > [@](#): > > There were 10 patients (0.01%) who died during the hospitalization for their arthroscopy episode. Of these, 1 patient had acute renal failure and another had ischemic heart disease, which was noted to be complicated by recent knee surgery on the death certificate. Further examination of the 30 day post-discharge mortality rate showed: > [@](#): > > There were a total of 55 patients (0.03%) who died within 30 days of their arthroscopy. Of these, 9 had PEs, 6 had myocardial infarctions, 6 had strokes, 3 had DVTs, and 2 had acute renal failure. The other 29 deaths were related to advanced disease processes, most notably 11 late-stage cancer-related deaths. There were 2 DVTs and 5 PEs identified from autopsy records not coded in hospital data. Many of these deaths seemed to be related to diseases that become more prevalent with advancing age. It is wise for abortion clinics and other outpatient surgery centers to plan for how to deal with various complications. It is not just patient deaths that require access for an emergency response. Some complications can be handled on site. Others may require transporting the patient to another facility where more advanced care is available. The facilities should plan ahead, keeping in mind the types and frequencies of complications encountered as well as the access needs of personnel and equipment to deal with such complications. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2014, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/womens-health-protection-act-a-pro-choice-senate-bill/693282/62 "2014-07-25T10:42:56Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > What the hell? Private clinic in New Brunswick closed? Approval by two doctors required? Damn, I’ve lost some of my smugness justification. > > [Cite](http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/new-brunswick-morgentaler-clinic-performs-final-abortions-1.1919665) To be fair, the two doctors requirement is in order to have the procedure covered by Medicare and NB, being one of those have not provinces, is trying to cut costs anywhere they can. Still, not our proudest moment. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/womens-health-protection-act-a-pro-choice-senate-bill/693282.md?page=3)