Thank you to Karen Garcia for telling Ruzena Brar's story ("Women's care," July 4). I do not believe any woman—be she a teenager or a 50-year-old professional—takes the termination of a pregnancy lightly. No woman should be judged by society for a thoughtful decision she feels she must make for her own health or the health of her family. It is a private matter between a woman, her partner, and her physician.

Society must protect a woman's rights to make decisions regarding her health and her family. She should be able to seek support where she wishes as she makes these decisions, which may be heartbreakingly difficult. Such matters should be beyond the purview of government and criticism from social groups that do not believe women can competently make their own decisions.

Ms. Brar is courageous in publicly relating her own story. It must have been difficult for her to to relive those memories, but surely it will benefit others who find themselves in such a difficult situation as well as those who may not understand that women and their families do not need to have these choices made for them by well-meaning legislators.

I'd also like to thank Planned Parenthood for supporting women and families in the face of resistance from people who seem to think they know what is best for everyone. Planned Parenthood needs to have public support to continue to do its work effectively.

L. R. Erickson

Los Osos