Connecticut U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal is leading an effort to reintroduce legislation aimed at blocking state and local laws prohibiting access to abortions or the operation of an abortion clinic.Originally introduced in 2013, Senator Blumenthal is once again bringing the Women’s Health Protection Act to the Senate after it failed to pass during last legislative session.
“Abortion is one of the safest legal procedures in the United States today,” Blumenthal said. “The principal of the legislation is that it should be subject to the same kinds of regulatory regiment as a medically comparable procedure. That’s sort of science and good common sense. That it should not be burdened with additional restrictions targeting abortion alone.”
Blumenthal said on a conference call today that nearly 42 years to the day of the Supreme Court’s decision in Roe v. Wade, there continue to be attempts to block access to abortion services. The Democrat from Connecticut says over the past five years more than 230 pieces of anti-choice legislation have been enacted across the country. He added five Senate and two House bills threatening reproductive rights have been introduced in three weeks of the newly Republican-controlled Congress. Senator Tammy Baldwin is one of 33 Senate co-sponsors of Blumenthal’s legislation, all of whom are Democrats. Her home state of Wisconsin has passed what pro-choice supporters call “trap” laws or targeted regulation of abortion providers.
“A law forcing women, who by the way are already required by Wisconsin law to make two separate trips to a clinic, to also undergo an invasive ultrasound 24 hours before receiving abortion care,” Baldwin said. “The same law also requires Wisconsin doctors who deliver reproductive care to have admitting privileges at a local hospital.”
Last session, 120 House members backed the Women’s Health Protection Act, when 201 Democrats were serving. With 188 Democrats this session, Representative Judy Chu of California is one of more than 60 current House members she says have committed to co-sponsoring the legislation this time around.
“This bill will finally put us on the offensive by preventing states from restricting access to abortion if they cannot actually demonstrate a benefit to women’s health,” said Chu.
Florida Congresswoman Lois Frankel says before 1973, the year of Roe v. Wade, the nonexistence of legal abortions caused a public health crisis.
“Women were attempting at-home abortions or seeking illegal abortions,” Frankel said. “I personally remember finding a friend who was near death from a self-inflicted abortion.”
With 54 Republicans compared to 45 last session, Blumenthal admits passage is an uphill battle.
“Obviously we’ll need to persuade a number of Republican colleagues in the Senate that it’s good public policy,” said Blumenthal.
Meanwhile, House Republicans are planning to vote on a bill Thursday, the 42nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, that would ban most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
