Rep. Pressley's Statement on Second Passage of Women's Health Protection Act

Statement

Today, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07), Chair of the Pro-Choice Caucus' Abortion Rights and Access Task Force, issued the following statement on the House's second passage of the Women's Health Protection Act (WHPA). Rep. Pressley is a lead co-sponsor of WHPA, bicameral legislation to guarantee equal access to abortion care, everywhere, which previously passed the House in September 2021.

"Abortion care is health care. Today, the House of Representatives has yet again passed necessary legislation, that I am proud to co-lead, to enshrine the right to abortion care for everyone who calls America home.

"The People's House has done its job, and we are calling on the Senate to do theirs. Daily, people are facing insurmountable barriers to abortion care. The fall out of the Supreme Court's cruel and extreme ruling is devastating, and Senate Republicans are actively complicit in denying people the care they need. The Senate must end the Jim Crow filibuster and pass this bill to counteract the Supreme Court's cruel and extreme decision.

"I applaud the White House and Department of Health and Human Services for acting on their executive authority to address access to abortion care and I call on them to declare a public health emergency to unlock more tools and resources to expand and protect abortion access.

"The people are with us on this and families from every corner of the nation are counting on us to deliver. We must do everything we can to protect the fundamental right to bodily autonomy for everyone."

Congresswoman Pressley has been a leading advocate for abortion access throughout her time in public life and she serves as Chair of the Pro-Choice Caucus's Abortion Rights and Access Task Force.

Last month, shortly before the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, Rep. Pressley led a group of her Black women colleagues in writing to President Biden urging him to declare a public health emergency amid the unprecedented threats to abortion rights nationwide. She also issued a statement condemning the Supreme Court decision and calling on the President to use every executive tool available to protect abortion access.

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