Schakowsky Votes Against Latest Republican Attack on Women's Reproductive Rights

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (IL-09) released the following statement after voting against the so called, Conscience Protection Act, that would attack women’s reproductive rights by allowing employers to deny their employees access to health insurance that covers abortions if they have moral objections:

“Today marks yet another Republican attack against women and their reproductive rights. This wholly unnecessary bill would seek to further limit women’s access to abortion – a medical service that I would like to remind everyone is legal in this country – further endangering women’s health.

“Women and their doctors, not their bosses should be making medical decisions. Yet, this bill does just the opposite by allowing employers to substitute their own conscience for that of their employees by denying them access to health insurance plans that cover abortions. This bill would also allow providers to refuse to ‘facilitate or make arrangements’ for an abortion if they have a moral objection to it. A Catholic hospital could force a doctor to withhold information about a patient’s medical condition or options if that information could “facilitate” a woman obtaining an abortion. They could also refuse to provide transportation to another hospital for a woman in distress if that hospital provides abortions. This dangerous provision would allow a health provider, relied on for life-saving service and care, to provide misleading or incomplete information putting the health of the patient in jeopardy.

“Republicans continue to target women and their bodies with their extreme social agenda. Their policy proposals aimed at women’s reproductive rights and their continued taxpayer-funded witch hunt of Planned Parenthood are continued evidence of this unceasing attack on women. We will continue to fight back against those attacks, and we will work to ensure that we expand and protect women’s reproductive rights.”

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