This week, the U.S. Supreme Court rightly struck down a law that would have significantly limited access to abortion services in Louisiana by requiring physicians who perform abortions to have admitting privileges at a local hospital.

The court’s decision in June Medical Services LLC v. Russo was decided on a razor-thin margin. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the majority solely out of respect for precedent, even as he continues to maintain his belief that previous cases were wrongly decided. This case has both national and local importance.

Laws like the one defeated in this case are often presented as common-sense regulations to protect women’s health. The truth is these requirements are medically unnecessary and designed to make abortion more difficult to access or to eliminate abortion access completely. Instead of protecting women’s health, these laws actually make it nearly impossible for women to get the care they need by placing oppressive regulations on a very safe and legal medical procedure.

All across the country, there are efforts to restrict access to critical reproductive health care. Even right here in New Hampshire, several bills were introduced this session effectively banning abortion. There is simply no place for that in the Granite State. Abortion is one of the safest medical procedures performed in the United States according to data from the CDC, showing the procedure has a safety record of over 99%. Instead of making access to abortion more restrictive and using laws to virtually shut down health care facilities, we need to support women and families as they make very personal and difficult decisions.

The recent U.S. Supreme Court case reinforces the importance of bold, state-level champions for reproductive health and justice who will resist any efforts to restrict access to critical family planning services, impede access to abortion, or impose abortion bans in New Hampshire. If Roe v. Wade is ever overturned, abortion rights devolve to states and will be decided by state legislatures, governors, and state courts.

As a staff attorney at the Disability Rights Center – N.H., I participated in individual and systemic litigation to ensure access to critical health care services for my clients. As the policy director of the New Hampshire Children’s Behavioral Health Collaborative at New Futures, I developed policy solutions to break down unnecessary barriers standing in the way of access to services for our most vulnerable.

As a New Hampshire senator, I will be a tireless advocate for protecting and expanding access to reproductive health care in the face of relentless attacks at the state and federal level. I will also work to ensure reproductive justice for all Granite Staters, regardless of race, gender, ZIP code, or economic status. I will fight to protect reproductive freedom, including the right to decide whether, when, and how to have children. This includes supporting maternal health during pregnancy, supporting families and caregivers once a child is born, ensuring access to paid family leave, and focusing on primary prevention efforts such as ensuring access to quality child care and early childhood education for all Granite Staters.

The bottom line is the government has no place dictating the choices we make about our bodies. This is a fundamental right that I will defend with unflagging passion.

(Becky Whitley, an attorney, is a candidate for New Hampshire Senate District 15, which includes Concord, Henniker, Hopkinton, and Warner.)