The Impact of the Supreme Court Decision to Overturn Roe v. Wade in Relation to BMES 2022

The Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) is devoted to developing and utilizing biomedical engineering to improve health and well-being for all individuals. The recent overturning of Roe v. Wade puts the health of many women and pregnant individuals at risk by limiting their right to have full access to health care. BMES is concerned that this decision will adversely affect the health and safety of our members and the broader society; we remain committed to our core values of health equity.

Some of our members are worried about the location of our 2022 national meeting in Texas, voicing concerns regarding the health of the meeting’s participants and that our meeting site implicitly supports laws that discriminate against populations including women, underrepresented populations, and the LGBTQIA+ community. The BMES Executive Committee states unequivocally that our meeting location, contracted years ago, does not imply support for unjust local laws, policies, or candidates. Laws that breed injustice do not align with our organizational values – BMES is ardently committed to protecting the rights, safety, and health of individuals and society as a whole.

Our 2022 meeting in San Antonio will assert our core values of health, equity, and reproductive rights through several coordinated presentations, including:

• Three technical sessions on women’s health, with talks on topics including the biomechanics of pregnancy, uterine imaging, placentas on a chip, and effective contraception
• Two sessions on global health technologies
• Two special sessions on addressing healthcare disparities
• A special session, led by members of the UTSA community, on the effects of legislation on healthcare disparities
• A session from AIMBE Executive Director Milan Yager on effective advocacy for reproductive and LGBTQIA+ rights

As such, our annual BMES meeting will continue to provide opportunities to train a new generation of healthcare advocates and to share our research and efforts towards improving human health and well-being for all individuals.

The BMES Executive Committee:

John A. White, Ph.D., President

Cynthia Reinhart-King, PhD, President-Elect

Debra Auguste, PhD, Treasurer

Jane Grande-Allen, PhD, Secretary

Naomi Chesler, PhD, Publications Board Chair

Donald P. Gaver, PhD, Finance Committee Chair

The BMES Board of Directors approved this statement.