PPTV STATEMENT ON SENATE STATE AFFAIRS HEARING TO FURTHER ANTI-ABORTION AGENDA

Austin, TX — Today, the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee will hold an invite-only hearing on interim charges related to abortion.

Statement by Dyana Limon-Mercado, Executive Director, Planned Parenthood Texas Votes

"In the midst of an ongoing public health crisis that threatens the lives of thousands of Texans, certain state legislators have time to engage in political theatre to further their own dangerous anti-choice agenda. Today’s sham ‘invite-only’ hearing will no doubt focus on disinformation and outright lies about abortion and pregnancy to further politicians’ efforts to outlaw safe, legal abortion. These efforts intentionally exclude the voices of everyday Texans who rely on the full spectrum of reproductive health care and the voices of providers, like Planned Parenthood, who provide this essential care. It’s clear that facts and people’s lived experiences directly contradict the extremist anti-abortion agenda.

“This hearing sets a dangerous precedent for what is to come in the 2021 Texas Legislative Session. Decisions about bodily autonomy should not be made by a committee of mostly male legislators, who are not medical professionals, and who have extremist views on abortion.

“Instead of focusing on how to combat the very real COVID-19 crisis in our state — we have a group of legislators determined to do what is in their best political interest, not what is the best interest of the people they were elected to serve. We saw clear evidence of this when Governor Greg Abbott implemented a temporary abortion ban earlier this year, while failing to lead on the COVID-19 crisis. In addition, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld Gov. Abbott’s mandate that Medicaid patients will no longer be able to seek essential health care at Planned Parenthood health centers.

“It is hard to imagine a time where it would be more apparent that Texans need access to more health care, not less. Yet, Gov. Abbott and some of our state legislators refuse to accept this as reality. We go into the next legislative session prepared to fight, as we always do, for reproductive health and rights with the full force of our movement. We won’t give up and neither will the more than 1 million Planned Parenthood supporters across the state.”

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Planned Parenthood Texas Votes (PPTV) is the nonpartisan policy, advocacy and political arm for the Planned Parenthood affiliates in Texas.

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