The Quickie: Senate Democrats Put The Spotlight On Abortion Rights Fight While Anti-Abortion House Republicans Continue Their Attacks
For Immediate Release: Jan. 18, 2024
Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.
In today’s Quickie: Senate Democrats hold a briefing on the state of abortion rights.
SENATE DEMOCRATS PUT THE SPOTLIGHT ON ABORTION RIGHTS FIGHT WHILE ANTI-ABORTION HOUSE REPUBLICANS CONTINUE THEIR ATTACKS: Yesterday was a “tale of two cities” on Capitol Hill: The U.S. House anti-abortion majority continued their attacks on abortion while Senate Democrats made protecting abortion rights a priority. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), alongside Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), and more hosted a briefing on the state of abortion rights to highlight the widespread harm of abortion bans and restrictions, and centered the voices and experiences of providers and advocates.
Dr. Serina Floyd, Chief Medical Officer and practicing OB/GYN at Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, DC, shared powerful testimony which focused on the experiences of patients traveling hundreds of miles to access care and people forced to remain pregnant when they have been unable to access abortion care.
“Health care providers—the medical experts—should be able to care for the people in front of them. Patients deserve to access the care they need, and providers should be able to provide that without unnecessary interference from the judiciary or politicians,” said Dr. Floyd. “Waiting on courts to make decisions for patients exacerbates the chaos and confusion that already exists—and that fear and uncertainty is the goal. People should be able to get care in their own communities, in a manner that is best for them with people they trust.”
