Freedom of the Individual

Floor Speech

Mr. BERA of California. Mr. Speaker, today, I want to speak about a case the Supreme Court is going to hear in a week, the Hobby Lobby case.

As a doctor, I took an oath to provide my patients with the best medical advice possible and empower them to make the decisions that impact their lives and to put them in charge. Women should be free to make the health care decisions that work best for them and respect their own faith and personal circumstances.

Allowing bosses to pick and choose the health care their employees receive sets a very dangerous precedent that could have far-reaching consequences. That is why the Hobby Lobby case that will be argued before the Supreme Court later this month is so important.

CEO David Green may oppose birth control--and that is his personal decision--but individual Hobby Lobby employees have their own moral and religious views, and they shouldn't have to subscribe to his.

This case isn't about the rights of corporate CEOs. It is about the rights of workers and patients everywhere. It is about the individual freedom to choose and make your own health care decisions.

We need to stop bosses and out-of-touch politicians who want to come into our exam room and make those health care decisions. Let's keep these bosses out of the exam room and allow women to make the health care decisions that impact their own lives.

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