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ICYMI: Senator Murray Leads Democrats in Pushing Biden for “Bold Action” to Protect Abortion Access in a Post-Roe America – MORE HERE
Senator Murray: “I’m fighting hard, with everything I’ve got, and I’m so thankful to be here today with such amazing partners.”
(Spokane, WA) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), visited a local Planned Parenthood clinic in Spokane, just miles from the Idaho border, and spoke with providers and staff to discuss how the Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade affects their ability to care for patients—particularly with Idaho’s abortion ban set to go into effect in just a matter of days.
During her visit, Senator Murray highlighted how the Dobbs decision and Republicans’ extreme abortion bans in states like Idaho are creating health care crises as patients are forced to travel across states lines to get the care they need. In particular, Senator Murray noted that five times as many patients might soon seek abortion care at clinics in Eastern Washington when Idaho’s extreme abortion ban goes into effect in a matter of days. Senator Murray also stressed that a national ban on abortion—threatening access to essential reproductive care in every state, including Washington—is a very real and current threat to women’s health being pushed by prominent Republican leaders at every level of government.
“The staff here is already seeing an uptick of patients, and are preparing for a surge of patients seeking care from Idaho because just a few miles from here, abortion bans are about to take effect that will force women to travel across state lines just to get the care they need. Because of this horrific ban, we could have five times as many people seeking abortions at this clinic and clinics like it,” said Senator Murray. “And Republicans have made it abundantly clear they won’t stop here—they want a federal ban on abortion. They want to overrule abortion protections in states like ours to ban abortion everywhere. So make no mistake: we are on the frontlines of a looming health care crisis. One that will be devastating for patients from Idaho and Washington state alike. One that will cost women their lives. And it is caused entirely by Republicans who have spent nearly five decades to this very end: taking away our rights.”
“We’re now a little over two weeks into this awful new reality, and I just want everyone here to know while I am furious, while I am heartbroken, I will never back away from this fight,” continued Senator Murray. “I’m fighting hard, with everything I’ve got, and I’m so thankful to be here today with such amazing partners. These providers are doing incredibly important work—even in the face of harassment and intimidation. The care they provide is essential. It saves lives. And I can’t thank them enough for the work they do.”
“We are already seeing the impacts of harmful legislation with 62% of our patient visits for abortion care in Pullman travelling from Idaho this year,” said Paul Dillon, Vice President of Public Affairs for Planned Parenthood of Greater Washington and North Idaho. “But know this: Our health centers in Washington – with our supportive and expert clinical staff — continue to provide the care and resources you’ve come to rely on. We believe all people — no matter where they live — should have the right to control their own body, life, and future. It is unjust and unacceptable that more than half of the states in the US, including our neighbors in Idaho, are moving to rob patients of that right, forced to overcome unjust barriers simply to access the abortion care they need and deserve.”
Since the leaked draft revealed the Supreme Court was planning to overturn Roe, Senator Murray has been a leader in the Senate pushing back: immediately calling the decision a “five alarm fire,” pushing for a vote on the Women’s Health Protection Act so every Republican Senator was forced to show the American public where they stood, and leading her colleagues in the fight to protect everyone’s reproductive rights. Senator Murray has led her colleagues in urging the Biden administration to craft an all-of-government plan to protect abortion rights. She called out data brokers’ collection and sale of sensitive location data that could put those seeking abortion care at risk—and introduced legislation to ban the practice outright. She introduced legislation condemning the criminalization of the full range of reproductive and sexual health care. Senator Murray also introduced legislation to expand access to affordable, over-the-counter birth control—and has led efforts in Congress to ensure patients can get the birth control they need without being forced to jump through unnecessary hoops or pay out-of-pocket.
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling, Senator Murray has announced that she will use her gavel as chair of the Senate Health Committee and hold a hearing on the decision’s devastating impacts on women’s health—and she has led her colleagues in once again calling on the Biden administration to take bold action to protect Americans’ reproductive rights.
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