At the one year anniversary of the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, Democrats have pushed several pro-abortion bills. They will use a procedure called “unanimous consent,” which only needs one senator to ask for a vote on a bill, but it also only takes one senator to object for the bill to fail. The idea is to force a vote on an issue.
Sen. Patty Murray, who led the push for these bills, said in a statement, “As we fight to get the votes we need to restore Roe, it’s imperative that we make plain to the country just how extreme and dangerous Republicans’ anti-abortion agenda is.”
These bills are all expected to be rejected by Republicans, but Murray said the underlying purpose of using this procedure is to keep the abortion debate fresh in voters’ minds. She explained, “Senate Democrats will force Republicans to go on the record once again, and explain to the American people why they refuse to codify our right to contraception, why they refuse to let women travel across state lines for lifesaving health care.”
The four bills in question are the “Right to Contraception Act,” the “Freedom to Travel for Health Care Act,” the “Let Doctors Provide Reproductive Health Care Act,” and the “UPHOLD Privacy Act.” It should come as little surprise that abortion is hidden in each of these bills under the guise of “health care” and “privacy” — and equally deceptively, as “contraception.”
The “Right to Contraception Act,” introduced by Ed Markey, would, according to some, expand the legal definition of contraception broadly, to possibly even include chemical abortion drugs. The Act states:
The term ‘‘contraceptive’’ means any drug, device, or biological product intended for use in the prevention of pregnancy, whether specifically intended to prevent pregnancy or for other health needs, that is approved, cleared, authorized, or licensed under section 505, 510(k), 513(f)(2), 515, or 564 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 355, 360(k), 360c(f)(2), 360e, 360bbb–3) or section 351 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262).
The act would also allow for taxpayer dollars to be used to fund abortion facilities, where these “contraceptives” are provided.
The “Freedom to Travel for Health Care Act” protects women who travel out of state for an abortion from any legal consequences. The act would also allow for inter-state telehealth visits where chemical abortion pills are prescribed.
The “Let Doctors Provide Reproductive Health Care Act” is the only one of these proposed bills that is not new. It was first proposed by Murray in 2022, but not passed. This act would give abortionists immunity from legal ramifications, and essentially gives them freedom to ignore state restrictions on abortion.
Lastly, the “UPHOLD Privacy Act,” which is new to this session, proposes to prevent records from abortions being used in investigations of illegal abortions. This act claims this is “health care” data that should be protected under HIPAA, giving apparent special treatment to abortion procedures.
All of these acts, and the senators proposing them, are seeking to undermine the ability of states to enforce their abortion laws and to protect the most vulnerable members of our society.
Editor’s Note: This post has been edited to add a clarifying quote.
