This group of RI lawmakers are standing up for women's rights. Here's how

PROVIDENCE - Last week, more than a dozen of Rhode Island's female legislators gathered in the House lounge to pose for a "right to bare arms" photo - and no, that is not a typo.

They stood — their arms raised, fists pumped — in a show of solidarity with their legislative counterparts in Missouri, who are facing a recent ban on female lawmakers wearing sleeveless attire.

On Tuesday, many of those same Rhode Island legislators gathered in the State House rotunda to flex their muscles again, this time in a shared fight against the obstacles in Rhode Island law to state-paid insurance coverage for abortions sought by state employees and Medicaid recipients.

More on state funded abortion:State-funded abortion coverage for Medicaid recipients, state employees back in play this session

Legislation to remove these legal obstacles is already pending, with 44 co-sponsors in the 75-member House and a matching bill in the Senate. And Gov. Dan McKee has included an overall $621,905 in his proposed state budget for next year to pay for the proposed "Equality in Abortion Coverage Act."

The common thread, as a number of Rhode Island's legislative women see it?

The spread of government-imposed restrictions on women that culminated in the reversal by the U.S. Supreme Court last June of the now 50-year-old Roe V. Wade abortion-rights decision.

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"Women's rights are under attack across our country in so many different ways, big and small," said freshman Rep. Jennifer Boylan of Barrington, the organizer of the "Right to Bare Arms" photo shoot (inspired, she says, by a similar photo posted by Vermont Democrats) - and a co-signer of the abortion-coverage bill.

"I do see a parallel," Democrat Boylan said Tuesday, ahead of the press conference, organized by the Rhode Island Coalition for Reproductive Freedom to mark the 50th anniversary of the "Roe" decision, days earlier.

"Telling women how to dress in the workplace ... mature adults who have made it to the State House to represent their districts - what they can and can't wear is ridiculous," she said. "A throwback to the '50s."

Concurring, Rep. Katherine Kazarian, the House majority whip, said: "The picture speaks a thousand words."

"Women have seen the effects of erratic politics and bad leadership... and realize we have to work together. We can't stand on the sidelines."

The common theme? "We don't want to be defined. We want to define ourselves."

Rhode Island has lawmaker dress codes too

For the record, the Rhode Island House and Senate have their own dress codes, which are not on the face of it gender specific.

Under the heading - "Decorum"- the Senate rules say: "While in the Senate chamber, members and staff shall be required to dress in proper and appropriate attire, such as blouses, dress slacks and collared shirts with accompanying jacket."

The current and proposed new House rules are even more open to interpretation: "No person on the floor of the chamber shall dress in a manner offensive to the decorum of the House."

Lawmakers commemorate 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade

Tuesday's press conference was described by its organizers as an event to "commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court Decision and call for the Passage of the Equality in Abortion Coverage Act (EACA)."

Among those speaking: the governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and treasurer - all Democrats; the Rev. Effie E. McAvoy, Shepherd of the Valley UMC; Maria Zou, Planned Parenthood Votes! Rhode Island and Dr. Beth Cronin, the RI Section Chair of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, who talked about the real life decisions doctors and patients face, even in Rhode Island where abortion rights are enshrined in state law.

"Seven months have passed since this decision and we are clearly seeing the impact it is having around the country," she said. "Patients are struggling to access abortion care, physicians are being forced to make decisions they should never have to make – when is the pregnant person’s life at risk enough that the abortion might be allowed? Could I lose my license doing this life saving procedure?"

"We are fortunate, living in Rhode Island, as abortion was codified into state law...However, not everyone can actually access abortion care in this state due to insurance restrictions."

"The cost of an abortion without insurance coverage is significant," the doctor said.

"The average cost of an abortion—whether surgical or medical—at approximately 10 weeks of pregnancy is about $650, with a second trimester procedure being significantly more. In addition, patients often must pay out of pocket for additional nonmedical costs, such as transportation and child care.

"It seems completely unfair that my patient who works three jobs to feed her family and relies on RI Medicaid for her health care would have to decide whether to not feed her children or skip paying for heat the month in order to access the health care procedure that she needs."

According to the RI Coalition for Reproductive Freedom: "Passing the EACA would impact nearly 80,000 people covered by Medicaid and 6,500 state employees who are of reproductive age. "

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: State-funded abortion coverage in RI gets support of female lawmakers