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REPS. JONES, DEGETTE LEAD CALL TO DEFEND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE FROM GOP-LED ATTEMPTS TO BLOCK ACCESS TO MEDICATION ABORTION
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representatives Mondaire Jones (D-NY) and Diana DeGette (D-CO), along with 28 of their colleagues, introduced a resolution urging Congress to protect access to reproductive health care by reaffirming the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) authority to preempt state law and ensure access to reproductive health care products.
This resolution reaffirms the FDA’s preemptive authority over state laws that seek to regulate approved drugs and biologics, as established in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Public Health Service Act. Anti-abortion states seeking to limit or prohibit access to medication abortion and other reproductive health products are breaking the law and must be stopped in their tracks by Congress and the FDA in order to protect vital reproductive health care services across the country.
“Congress must act immediately to prevent states from banning medication abortions,” said Rep. Jones. “Our most fundamental rights are under attack by this rogue Supreme Court majority, and we have a responsibility to do everything we can to protect these rights and defend every American’s access to life-saving medical care. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution and safeguard reproductive health services at the state level — before it is too late.”
“Every woman in this country, no matter where she lives or how much money she makes, should have the freedom to make her own health care decisions – including whether to use birth control or seek abortion care,” said Rep. DeGette. “We are not going to sit back and allow states to put their own radical agendas between patients and the care they need. By reaffirming FDA’s power to regulate health care products in this country, we are sending states a clear message that Congress will not tolerate any attempt to limit women’s access to reproductive care.”
Since the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Republican-led state legislatures have launched attacks on reproductive freedom, attempting to criminalize the delivery of medication abortion by mail and imposing strict regulations to discourage doctors from prescribing this option. Medication abortion is a safe, effective, and widely used method to terminate a pregnancy that has been approved by the FDA for more than 20 years; this method is newly under threat by ultra-conservative, anti-abortion legislation at the state level in every corner of the United States.
The resolution is co-sponsored by Reps. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), André Carson (D-IN), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Cori Bush (D-MO), Dina Titus (D-NV), Dwight Evans (D-PA), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), Jackie Speier (D-CA), Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Chuy García (D-IL), John Larson (D-CT), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Marie Newman (D-IL), Mark Takano (D-CA), Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Troy Carter (D-LA), and Zoe Lofgren (D-CA).
The resolution is endorsed by Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the National Women’s Law Center, NARAL Pro-Choice America, the Center for Reproductive Rights, Power to Decide, the EMAA Project, and Physicians for Reproductive Health.
“We are in the midst of a public health crisis that is becoming more dire by the day,” said Katherine Gillespie, Acting Director of Federal Policy & Advocacy at the Center for Reproductive Rights. “Abortion services are now illegal in eight states, and the number of states enforcing radical bans and denying people life-saving care is growing rapidly. We appreciate Congress’ efforts to reaffirm FDA’s authority to preempt state laws restricting or banning medication abortion in an effort to help mitigate this crisis.”
“Decades of research and use show just how safe and effective medication abortion care is,” said Kirsten Moore, Director of the EMAA Project. “Banning the use of an FDA-approved medication is unprecedented and further cuts off access to care, especially for those who live in rural areas or who may be unable to get to a clinic in-person. This resolution affirms the FDA’s science-based decision making and makes it clear that playing politics with people’s health care is cruel.”
“This resolution sends a clear and forceful reminder that medication abortion is safe and effective health care and that FDA’s authority takes precedence over restrictive state laws attempting to block access,” said Power to Decide CEO Dr. Raegan McDonald-Mosley, MD, MPH. “Power to Decide thanks Rep. Jones and all of the legislative champions for defending abortion access in this crucial moment.”
Full text of the resolution can be found here.