Abuses of Women's Rights in Sexual and Reproductive Health-care Settings

The article describes five areas where women's reproductive rights are violated, often related to women's HIV status, age, race, ethnicity, class and sexual orientation. The first area of violation discussed is the requirement for mandatory HIV testing of pregnant women, which may prevent pregnant women from seeking prenatal care. The second area is prevention of mother-to-child transmission, which can focus on the needs of the child to the detriment of the needs of the woman. The third area of violation is coerced sterilization, which involves the forced sterilization of women during other medical procedures. The fourth area is limited access to safe and legal abortions for HIV-positive women. The fifth area of violation is the denial of reproductive health services to HIV-positive women. The author advocates for the use of litigation as a tool to address these violations and advance women's reproductive rights.