Today, Congresswoman Judy Chu (D-CA) testified at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in support of the Women's Health Protection Act (WHPA). Congresswoman Chu is the House-lead sponsor of WHPA, a bill that would outlaw the restrictive state laws that target abortion services and shut down clinics across the country. Rep. Chu released the following statement:
"Every woman should have access to affordable and comprehensive health care coverage that protects her right to choose," Rep. Chu said. "This should be the case regardless of her income, the type of insurance she has or the state she resides in, so she can make personal health decisions based on what is best for her and her family."
Between 2011 and 2013, more than two dozen states passed over 200 restrictions that block access to abortion services. This translates to more restrictions placed on women's health care in three years than in the entire preceding decade. According to the Guttmacher Institute, 56 percent of women in our country live in a state that is hostile to abortion.
"The effect of these laws is that a woman's constitutional right now depends on her zip code," continued Rep. Chu. "The rights of women residing in my home state of California now vastly differ from the rights of women living in Texas or Mississippi. We need laws that put women's health and safety first -- not politics."
H.R. 3471, the Women's Health Protection Act would protect a woman's right to safe and legal abortion by stopping restrictive regulations and laws -- such as those in place in states including Texas and Wisconsin -- intended to curtail reproductive health services for women. This legislation would prohibit laws that impose burdensome requirements on access to reproductive health services such as requiring doctors to perform tests and procedures that doctors have deemed unnecessary or preventing doctors from prescribing and dispensing medication as is medically appropriate. Other examples of laws that make it more difficult for a woman to access an abortion include: restrictions on medical training for future abortion providers, requirements concerning the physical layout of clinics where abortions are performed, and forced waiting periods for patients.
The Women's Health Protection Act has 124 cosponsors in the House and 35 cosponsors in the Senate. The bill was introduced by Reps. Judy Chu (D-CA), Marcia Fudge (D-OH) and Lois Frankel (D-FL) in the House, and Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) in the Senate.