Lyft President John Zimmer (R) and CEO Logan Green communicate as Lyft lists on the Nasdaq at an IPO occasion in Los Angeles March 29, 2019.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Lyft and Uber mentioned this week they will absolutely cover legal fees for their respective drivers who’re sued under Oklahoma’s anticipated restrictive abortion law.
The Oklahoma House on Thursday handed the Texas-style ban that prohibits most abortions after about six weeks of being pregnant, a time interval earlier than many ladies have even found they’re pregnant. The so-called Oklahoma Heartbeat Act now goes to Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt, who is anticipated to signal it inside days.
Like the Texas law, individuals aiding the process, together with medical doctors, individuals paying for the process and clinic employees are in danger. That consists of rideshare drivers who will be punished for transporting girls to clinics to obtain abortions, the place they could possibly be fined as much as $10,000. Abortion rights activists and suppliers argue these legal guidelines successfully overturn protections set under Roe v. Wade in 1973.
“Women’s access to health care is under attack again, this time in Oklahoma,” Lyft CEO Logan Green mentioned in a tweeted statement. “Lyft drivers are once again caught in the middle just for getting people where they need to go. We believe transportation shouldn’t be a barrier to accessing health care and it’s our duty to support both our rider and driver communities.”
Lyft and Uber first introduced protections for drivers in Texas after its restrictive abortion law took impact in September. Now, the rideshare corporations are extending that assist to drivers in Oklahoma.
“Like in TX, we intend to cover all legal fees for any driver sued under this law while they’re driving,” an Uber spokesman informed CNBC in an e-mail.
In addition, for girls in Oklahoma and Texas who search out-of-state abortion care, Lyft is working with well being supplier companions to create a “safe state” program that might cover the prices of transportation to airports and clinics.
Lyft will additionally cover journey prices for its workers enrolled in U.S. medical advantages, which embody protection for elective abortion, if the legal guidelines require journey outdoors of Texas or Oklahoma to seek out care.
“This law is incompatible with people’s basic rights to privacy, our community guidelines, the spirit of rideshare, and our values as a company,” Lyft mentioned in a weblog publish.
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