WASHINGTON — Today, Congressional Pro-Choice Caucus co-chairs Rep. Diana DeGette (CO-01) and Rep. Barbara Lee (CA-13), and Progressive Caucus chair Rep. Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) released the following statement in response to the enactment of S.B. 8, an extreme anti-abortion law in Texas:
“This law is an all-out assault on reproductive health and rights in America ,and will have devastating and immediate consequences for patients in Texas. People have the right to make their own decisions about whether or not to seek abortion, but this law eliminates access to legal abortion after about six weeks — before many people even know they’re pregnant.
“While this law is now the most extreme abortion ban enacted in the U.S., Texas is not alone in its attempts to roll back decades of protections: nearly 600 abortion restrictions have been introduced in 2021 alone, and 90 have been enacted. In the coming months, the Supreme Court will hear a Mississippi case with the potential to gut the protections of Roe v. Wade.
“In light of the Supreme Court’s abdication of its duty to protect reproductive rights, the Pro-Choice Caucus and the Progressive Caucus call on Congress to immediately take action to enshrine the right to access abortion into federal law. The House should immediately pass the Women’s Health Protection Act, introduced by Rep. Judy Chu (CA-27), to ensure that states like Texas cannot ban this critical health service, and we urge the Senate to do whatever is necessary to send it to the President' desk. Congress must also continue to strike down other restrictions on access to abortion in federal law, including bans on insurance coverage like the Hyde Amendment, as well as protecting access to medication abortion from politically motivated attacks.
"The Biden administration has emphasized its commitment to protecting the right to abortion, and now is the time to put that into action. We call on Attorney General Garland to explore whatever steps the Department of Justice can take to respond to this blatant violation of Texans' constitutional rights.
“The PCC and CPC stand with people in Texas, and throughout the country, who are fighting these draconian restrictions, and working to ensure that all people have access to the abortion care they need. We know that bans like the one in Texas harm people who already face barriers to care the most: people of color, people with low incomes, people living in rural areas. Everyone — no matter their income, where they live, or how they’re insured — has the right to make their own decisions about their bodies and their lives, and we are committed to promoting policies that protect the reproductive freedom of all people.”
