Planned Parenthood Condemns House Passage of H.R. 358 Bill Severely Undermines Women’s Access to Care

Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota (PPMNS) strongly criticized the House of Representatives for passing H.R. 358, a dangerous bill that undermines women’s access to care, including eliminating protections for women seeking care in emergency situations.

“This bill is an egregious attack on women’s access to health care,” said Sarah Stoesz, PPMNS President and CEO. “Most devastating, the bill eliminates protections for patients seeking care in emergency circumstances, and would allow a hospital to deny lifesaving abortion care to a woman, even if a doctor deems it necessary.”

Planned Parenthood health centers are trusted nonprofit health care providers that provide professional, reliable, and quality health care, including birth control, lifesaving cancer screenings, annual exams, and STD testing and treatment to three million women and men across the country. One in five American women has been to a Planned Parenthood health center at some point in her life. In addition, six in 10 women who receive care from a women’s health center like those operated by Planned Parenthood consider it to be their main source of health care.

H.R. 358 is an attempt by House leaders to force consideration of policies that would drastically erode women’s health and reduce access to basic health care services and information.

“House leaders just can’t keep their eye on the ball and focus on jobs and the economy,” said Stoesz. “In fact, this bill will increase the economic burden on already struggling American families by eliminating health insurance provisions that could save them from bankruptcy.”

The Obama administration has issued a Statement of Administration Policy (SAP) opposing H.R. 358, indicating President Obama would veto H.R. 358 if it passes Congress.

Read the SAP here.

The bill’s several anti-women’s health provisions include:

• taking comprehensive health care coverage away from women
• eliminating existing protections for women who need an abortion to save their lives
• further expanding current refusal laws that undermine women’s health
• creating loopholes that states and insurance companies could exploit to undermine the requirement that insurance companies provide birth control with no co-pays