Go to Content Go to Navigation Go to Navigation Go to Site Search Homepage

“Decisions about a woman’s pregnancy are not for politicians to make.” – Cecile Richards

WASHINGTON – Just two days after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down a 20-week abortion ban in his home state of Arizona, Representative Trent Franks convened a committee hearing today on a similar bill.  Originally, this unconstitutional abortion ban would only apply to women seeking abortions in Washington, DC, but Franks recently announced that he is expanding the legislation to apply to all 50 states as well.  If enacted, this ban would endanger women by limiting their access to abortion even if they learn that their pregnancy poses a threat to their health.

Following is a statement from Cecile Richards, President, Planned Parenthood Federation of America:

“Decisions about a woman’s pregnancy are not for politicians to make.  That’s what we’ve heard time and time again – from the courts and from the American people.  These laws are outrageous, they will not stand, and Representative Franks is wasting time and taxpayer money by holding a hearing on his unconstitutional legislation.  Speaker Boehner and House Leadership should put a stop to this.

“Not content just to interfere in the medical decisions of women in our nation’s capitol, Representative Franks has chosen to extend this law to limit access to safe and legal abortion nationwide under the guise of protecting women.  We must have and enforce laws that protect access to safe and legal abortion, and we must reject misguided proposals like this one that would limit women's options. 

“Laws banning abortion beginning at 20 weeks of pregnancy would take a deeply personal decision out of the hands of a woman and her doctor. While abortions later in pregnancy are uncommon, it is important that a woman and her doctor have every medical option available to protect a woman’s health. In states that have passed laws like this, some women and their families have been put into heartbreaking and tragic situations — needing to end a pregnancy for serious medical reasons, but unable to do so.”  

BACKGROUND:  

In the 40 years following the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling, the Supreme Court has never wavered from the principle that the Constitution protects a woman's liberty, including her decision to have an abortion, and that, therefore, a state may not ban abortion prior to viability.  In fact, unconstitutional abortion bans similar to this one have been blocked several times just this year in courts across the country. 

•Arizona’s 20-week ban was ruled unconstitutional by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals this week.  

•Georgia’s 20-week ban is preliminarily blocked by a state court while a challenge proceeds.  

•In holding an Idaho 20-week ban unconstitutional on March 6, 2013, U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill wrote, “The State's clear disregard of this controlling Supreme Court precedent and its apparent determination to define viability in a manner specifically and repeatedly condemned by the Supreme Court evinces an intent to place an insurmountable obstacle in the path of women.”

In states that have passed laws like this, some women and their families have been put into heartbreaking and tragic situations — needing to end a pregnancy for serious medical reasons, but unable to do so.

•For example, as the result of a similar measure passed in Nebraska in 2010, a woman named Danielle Deaver, was forced to continue a pregnancy even after a health crisis meant she was going to lose the pregnancy.  She was forced to live through 10 excruciating days waiting to give birth to a baby that she knew would die minutes later, because her doctors feared prosecution under her state’s 20-week abortion ban.  “That my pregnancy ended, that choice was made by God.  How to handle the end of my pregnancy, that should have been private,” Deaver has said. 

•An Air Force Pilot based in Little Rock recently described he and his wife’s difficult decision to end a pregnancy after 20 weeks – which is now prohibited in his state after a 2013 state law enacted over the Arkansas Governor’s veto.  “My wife is a surgical nurse and I am a pilot, but even flying in combat over Iraq and Afghanistan did not prepare me for when the ultrasound technician stopped smiling…. We wanted our child. We do not vote in Arkansas, we are here because I am stationed in Little Rock, and it is where we have to seek medical treatment. Military families like mine with spouses deployed and concerns of their own are subject to this unconscionable law as well.”

Source

Planned Parenthood Federation of America

Contact

Planned Parenthood Federation of America media office: 212-261-4433

Published

May 23, 2013

Updated

September 07, 2016

We and our third partners use cookies and other tools to collect, store, monitor, and analyze information about your interaction with our site to improve performance, analyze your use of our sites and assist in our marketing efforts. You may opt out of the use of these cookies and other tools at any time by visiting Cookie Settings. By clicking “Allow All Cookies” you consent to our collection and use of such data, and our Terms of Use. For more information, see our Privacy Notice.

Cookie Settings

We, and our third-party partners, use cookies, pixels, and other tracking technologies to collect, store, monitor, and process certain information about you when you access and use our services, read our emails, or otherwise engage with us. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences, or your device. We use that information to make the site work, analyze performance and traffic on our website, to provide a more personalized web experience, and assist in our marketing efforts. We also share information with our social media, advertising, and analytics partners. You can change your default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of required cookies when utilizing our site; this includes necessary cookies that help our site to function (such as remembering your cookie preference settings). For more information, please see our Privacy Notice.

Marketing

On

We use online advertising to promote our mission and help constituents find our services. Marketing pixels help us measure the success of our campaigns.

User Feedback and Session Replay

On

We use qualitative data from LogRocket, UserZoom, Hotjar and AB Tasty to learn about your user experience and improve our products and services. LogRocket allows us to view session replays.